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pigmentation

(Encyclopedia)pigmentation, name for the coloring matter found in certain plant and animal cells and for the color produced thereby. Pigmentation occurs in nearly all living organisms. Almost all plants synthesize ...

Davenport, Charles Benedict

(Encyclopedia)Davenport, Charles Benedict dăvˈənpôrtˌ [key], 1866–1944, American zoologist, b. Stamford, Conn., Ph.D. Harvard, 1892. As director (1904–34) of the experimental station of Carnegie Institutio...

melanin

(Encyclopedia)melanin mĕlˈənĭn [key], water-insoluble polymer of various compounds derived from the amino acid tyrosine. It is one of two pigments found in human skin and hair and adds brown to skin color; the ...

human

(Encyclopedia)human: see anthropology; human evolution; race. ...

dermatitis

(Encyclopedia)dermatitis dûrˌmətīˈtĭs [key], nonspecific irritation of the skin. The causative agent may be a bacterium, fungus, or parasite; it can also be a foreign substance, known as an allergen. Contact ...

albino

(Encyclopedia)albino ălbīˈnō [key] [Port.,=white], animal or plant lacking normal pigmentation. The absence of pigment is observed in the body covering (skin, hair, and feathers) and in the iris of the eye. The...

Addison's disease

(Encyclopedia)Addison's disease [for Thomas Addison], progressive disease brought about by atrophy of the outer layer, or cortex, of the adrenal gland; it is also called chronic adrenocortical insufficiency. The de...

human evolution

(Encyclopedia)human evolution, theory of the origins of the human species, Homo sapiens. Modern understanding of human origins is derived largely from the findings of paleontology, anthropology, and genetics, and i...

human papillomavirus

(Encyclopedia)human papillomavirus (HPV), any of a family of more than 100 viruses that cause various growths, including plantar warts and genital warts, a sexually transmitted disease. Genital warts, sometimes cal...

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