gemmule

gemmule is a Noun

Definition:

[1] A little leaf bud, as the plumule between the cotyledons.

[2] One of the buds of mosses.

[3] One of the reproductive spores of algæ.

[4] An ovule.

[5] A bud produced in generation by gemmation.

[6] One of the imaginary granules or atoms which, according to Darwin`s hypothesis of pangenesis, are continually being thrown off from every cell or unit, and circulate freely throughout the system, and when supplied with proper nutriment multiply by self-division and ultimately develop into cells like those from which they were derived. They are supposed to be transmitted from the parent to the offspring, but are often transmitted in a dormant state during many generations and are then developed. See Pangenesis.