Glossary
BioScience.com.pk try the best to avoid the use of medical terms that could make it more difficult to understand the information on this website. Still, there are a number of terms that can’t be avoided and that are useful to know because they are so often used by the doctors, nurses, and other medical professionals with whom you might speak. The list below includes the terms used on BioScience.com.pk for which we have provided definitions.
| Term | Definition |
|---|---|
| Colonization | The presence or growth of bacteria on or in the body; those who are colonized may or may not develop an infection and/or may spread the bacteria to others, in whom they may cause disease. |
| Collagen | A group of proteins that form elongated fibers that are the main component in connective tissues such as skin, ligaments, tendons, cartilage and bone |
| Cognitive | (n. cognition) Relating to the mental process of acquiring knowledge through awareness, perception, intuition, and reasoning |
| CNS | Also known as: central nervous system One of the two main divisions of the human nervous system, consisting of the brain and the spinal cord; the other division is the peripheral nervous system. |
| Clone | (noun) Cell, group of cells, or organisms that descend from a single cell or organism; clones are genetically identical |
| Cirrhosis | Chronic disease condition of the liver in which fibrous tissue and nodules replace normal tissue, interfering with blood flow and normal functions of the organ |
| Chronic | A condition or illness that arises slowly over days or weeks and may or may not resolve with treatment. It is the opposite of acute. |
| Chromosome | Threadlike structure in every cell nucleus that carries the inheritance factors (genes) composed of DNA (deoxyribonucleic acid, the gene material) and a protein (usually histone). A human cell normally contains 46 chromosomes, or 22 homologous pairs and 1 pair of sex chromosomes; one member of each pair of chromosomes is derived from each parent. |
| Chloroquine | Drug used in the treatment and prevention of malaria |
| Chemotherapy | Also known as: Chemo |
| Chelation | Binding of a metal ion by a large molecule to form a soluble complex; chelation therapy uses large molecules such as EDTA (ethylene diamine tetraacetic acid) to remove excess metals (like lead or iron) from tissues and enable their excretion. |
| Chain of Custody | Legal document created when a piece of evidence is obtained that records the movement, location, handling and/or testing of the evidence from the time it is collected until the evidence is used in a legal proceeding and/or until it is no longer needed and is discarded or destroyed |
| Cervical Adenitis | Lymph node inflammation in the neck |
| Cerebrospinal Fluid | Also known as: CSF |
| Centrifugation | The automated process of separating lighter portions of a solution, mixture, or suspension from the heavier portions, by centrifugal force |