Definition of "mitochondrion" [mitochondrion]

• A spherical or elongated organelle in the cytoplasm of nearly all eukaryotic cells, containing genetic material and many enzymes important for cell metabolism, including those responsible for the conversion of food to usable energy. Also called chondriosome. (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 mitochondrion is a tiny, membrane-enclosed "power plant" which generates the cell's supply of chemical energy (ATP)."
• "See, the mitochondrion is a tiny cellular power-plant that converts organic materials into adenosine triphosphate!'"
• "At the core of the process of energy creation is a tiny structure within the cell called the mitochondrion—this is the body’s energy factory."