prokaryotic
adjective
pro·kary·ot·ic
(ˌ)prō-ˌker-ē-ˈä-tik 
-ˌka-rē-ˈä-tik
: of, relating to, or being a typically unicellular organism (as of the domains Bacteria and Archaea) lacking a distinct nucleus and membrane-bound organelles : being or characteristic of a prokaryote
prokaryotic genes
prokaryotic microorganisms
Examples of prokaryotic in a Sentence
Recent Examples on the Web
Over the last decade, the discovery of Asgard archaea, our closest living prokaryotic relatives, has offered valuable clues.
—
Quanta Magazine, 28 Oct. 2024
Perhaps prokaryotic organisms that didn’t start out with the ability to control their DNA that way would have struggled to make the leap.
—Quanta Magazine, 2 May 2024
The much older prokaryotic cells, which make up the vast kingdoms of bacteria and archaea and whose cells lack these features, never got complex multicellularity off the ground.
—Quanta Magazine, 2 May 2024
According to this theory, a prokaryotic cell called an archaeon (and specifically called an Asgard archaeon) consumed another prokaryotic cell, a bacterium, a couple billion years ago, creating a sort of composite of the two.
—Sam Walters, Discover Magazine, 28 June 2022
The transition from a simple prokaryotic cell to a complex eukaryotic one was accompanied by a large rise in the number of genes.
—Ed Yong, Discover Magazine, 20 Oct. 2010
The story of CRISPR/Cas began with the observation in the late 1980s and early 1990s that most prokaryotic organisms — including many bacteria and nearly all of the archaea — have an odd structure in their genome.
—Quanta Magazine, 7 Oct. 2020
But a new study published this month in Science discovered that a family of proteins in bacteria and archaea, the simple prokaryotic cells that are the oldest form of life, detect viruses in a way never seen before.
—Annie Melchor, Quanta Magazine, 29 Aug. 2022
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Quanta Magazine, 28 Oct. 2024
Perhaps prokaryotic organisms that didn’t start out with the ability to control their DNA that way would have struggled to make the leap.
—Quanta Magazine, 2 May 2024
The much older prokaryotic cells, which make up the vast kingdoms of bacteria and archaea and whose cells lack these features, never got complex multicellularity off the ground.
—Quanta Magazine, 2 May 2024
According to this theory, a prokaryotic cell called an archaeon (and specifically called an Asgard archaeon) consumed another prokaryotic cell, a bacterium, a couple billion years ago, creating a sort of composite of the two.
—Sam Walters, Discover Magazine, 28 June 2022
The transition from a simple prokaryotic cell to a complex eukaryotic one was accompanied by a large rise in the number of genes.
—Ed Yong, Discover Magazine, 20 Oct. 2010
The story of CRISPR/Cas began with the observation in the late 1980s and early 1990s that most prokaryotic organisms — including many bacteria and nearly all of the archaea — have an odd structure in their genome.
—Quanta Magazine, 7 Oct. 2020
But a new study published this month in Science discovered that a family of proteins in bacteria and archaea, the simple prokaryotic cells that are the oldest form of life, detect viruses in a way never seen before.
—Annie Melchor, Quanta Magazine, 29 Aug. 2022
Dictionary Entries Near prokaryotic
Cite this Entry
“Prokaryotic.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/prokaryotic. Accessed 22 Dec. 2024.
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