monozygous


monozygotic

 [mon″o-zi-got´ik; mon″o-zi´gus] (monozygous) pertaining to or derived from a single zygote (fertilized ovum); said of twins. See also dizygotic. A, Monozygotic twinning. The single inner cell mass divides into two inner cell masses during the blastocyst stage. These twins have a single placenta and chorion, but each twin develops in its own amnion. B, Dizygotic twinning. Two ova are released during ovulation, and each is fertilized by a separate spermatozoon. The ova may implant near each other in the uterus, or they may be far apart. From McKinney et al., 2000.

mon·o·zy·got·ic twins

twins resulting from one zygote that at an early stage of development separated into independently growing cell aggregations giving rise to two individuals of the same sex and identical genetic constitution. Synonym(s): enzygotic twins, identical twins, monochorial twins, monovular twins, uniovular twins

u·ni·ger·mi·nal

(yū'ni-jer'mi-năl), Relating to a single germ or zygote, for example, monozygotic. Synonym(s): monogerminal, monozygotic, monozygous