Definition of "dendrite" [den•drite]

• A mineral crystallizing in another mineral in the form of a branching or treelike mark. (noun)
• A rock or mineral bearing such a mark or marks. (noun)
• A branched protoplasmic extension of a nerve cell that conducts impulses from adjacent cells inward toward the cell body. A single nerve may possess many dendrites. Also called dendron. (noun)

American Heritage(R) Dictionary of the English Language, Fifth Edition. Copyright (c) 2011 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. All rights reserved.

• "The word dendrite means fingers; the organic glue and the surfactant used to shape the Clay NanoSheets used in this hydrogel both have fingers that reach out and grab the nearby elements, holding it all together."
• "A dendrite is a projection from a neuron that receives signals from the axons of its neighbors."
• "Based on rat studies, they hypothesize that "dendrite arborization" -- an increased branching growth of nerve cells -- caused by chronic antidepressant exposure, may be the cause."