Definitions beginning with M

Moisture Equivalent - permalink - collapse

All > Science > Weather

In hydrologic terms, the ratio of the weight of water which the soil, after saturation, will retain against a centrifugal force 1,000 times the force of gravity, to the weight of the soil when dry. The ratio is stated as a percentage.
NOAA National Weather Service - Cite This Source - This Definition
Browse Related Terms: Field (Moisture) Capacity, Field Moisture Deficiency, Hydrologic Budget, Infiltration, Infiltration Capacity, Lysimeter, SMA, Soil moisture

Moisture Ridge - permalink - collapse

All > Science > Weather

An axis of relatively high dew point values. This axis is sometimes referred to as a 'moist tongue'.
NOAA National Weather Service - Cite This Source - This Definition
Browse Related Terms: DEW, Dew point, Dew Point Depression, DP, DWPT, Moisture, MSTR, Residual Moisture

MOL - permalink - collapse

All > Technology > Defense

Minimum Operating Level.
DoD Missile Defense Agency - Cite This Source - This Definition
Browse Related Terms: EOA, FOL, NISPOM, OAC, OM, omg, Operations Profile, OPNS, OPORD, OPS, OPSMOD, OPTEMPO, OR, ORC, OS, OWG, PKO, RTOV, S/O, SOP

molar pregnancy - permalink - collapse

All > Medicine > Cancer

(MOH-ler PREG-nun-see) A slow-growing tumor that develops from trophoblastic cells (cells that help an embryo attach to the uterus and help form the placenta) after fertilization of an egg by a sperm. A molar pregnancy contains many cysts (sacs of fluid). It is usually benign (noncancerous) but it may spread to nearby tissues (invasive mole). It may also become a malignant tumor called choriocarcinoma. Molar pregnancy is the most common type of gestational trophoblastic tumor. Also called hydatidiform mole.
National Cancer Institute - Cite This Source - This Definition
Browse Related Terms: chorioadenoma destruens, chorioblastoma, choriocarcinoma, chorioepithelioma, chorionic carcinoma, corpus, gestational trophoblastic tumor, hydatidiform mole, invasive hydatidiform mole, trophoblast

mold - permalink - collapse

All > Medicine > Cancer

A form of fungus. Some molds can cause disease in humans.
National Cancer Institute - Cite This Source - This Definition
Browse Related Terms: anorexia, BCG solution, celiac disease, dyscrasia, etiology, fever, idiopathic, myasthenia gravis, opportunistic infection, rabies, terminal disease

mole - permalink - collapse

All > Medicine > Cancer

A benign (noncancerous) growth on the skin that is formed by a cluster of melanocytes (cells that make a substance called melanin, which gives color to skin and eyes). A mole is usually dark and may be raised from the skin. Also called nevus.
National Cancer Institute - Cite This Source - This Definition
Browse Related Terms: albinism, iris, jaundice, MC1R, melanin, melanocortin 1 receptor, melanocyte, melanotropin receptor, nevus, ophthalmic, pigment, pupil

Molecular biology - permalink - collapse

All > Science > Biotechnology and Genetics > Food Biotechnology

A general term referring to study of the structure and function of proteins and nucleic acids in biological systems. See Biotechnology for the 21st Century: New Horizons for more information.
USDA CSREES - Cite This Source - This Definition
The study of living processes at the molecular level.
UN Food and Agriculture Organization - Cite This Source - This Definition
The study of the biochemical and mo- lecular interactions within living cells.
Susan Allender-Hagedorn and Charles Hagedorn - Cite This Source - This Definition
Browse Related Terms: bio-, bio-assay, bio-energetics, Biotechnology, Biotechnology-derived, viability, viability test

All > Science > Biotechnology and Genetics > Human Genome

The study of the structure, function, and makeup of biologically important molecules.
Human Genome Project - Cite This Source - This Definition
Browse Related Terms: bioinformatics, Computational biology, Escherichia coli, functional genomics, genomics, Toxicogenomics

molecular chaperone - permalink - collapse

All > Science > Biotechnology and Genetics > Food Biotechnology

See: chaperone.
UN Food and Agriculture Organization - Cite This Source - This Definition
Browse Related Terms: chaperonin, Dalton, kDa, megaDalton, molecular pharming

Molecular cloning - permalink - collapse

All > Science > Biotechnology and Genetics > Food Biotechnology

The biological amplification of a DNA sequence via the mitotic division of a host cell into which it has been transformed or transfected. See: cloning.
UN Food and Agriculture Organization - Cite This Source - This Definition
The biological amplification of a specific DNA sequence through mitotic division of a host cell into which it has been transformed or transfected. (See Cloning.)
Susan Allender-Hagedorn and Charles Hagedorn - Cite This Source - This Definition
Browse Related Terms: animal cloning, Cloning, cloning vehicle, co-cloning, forced cloning, Megabase cloning, recombinant DNA technology, Subcloning, zoo blot

molecular diagnosis - permalink - collapse

All > Medicine > Cancer

(muh-LEH-kyoo-ler dy-ug-NOH-sis) The process of identifying a disease by studying molecules, such as proteins, DNA, and RNA, in a tissue or fluid.
National Cancer Institute - Cite This Source - This Definition
Browse Related Terms: apoptosis, biomarker, glycan, micromolar, molecular marker, molecular mass, molecular pathway, programmed cell death, signaling pathway, signature molecule

(muh-LEH-kyuh-ler-lee TAR-geh-ted THAYR-uh-pee) In cancer treatment, substances that kill cancer cells by targeting key molecules involved in cancer cell growth.
National Cancer Institute - Cite This Source - This Definition
Browse Related Terms: oncolytic virotherapy, oncolytic virus, oncolytic virus therapy, targeted therapy, viral therapy, virotherapy

molecular marker - permalink - collapse

All > Medicine > Cancer

(muh-LEH-kyoo-ler ...) A biological molecule found in blood, other body fluids, or tissues that is a sign of a normal or abnormal process, or of a condition or disease. A molecular marker may be used to see how well the body responds to a treatment for a disease or condition. Also called biomarker and signature molecule.
National Cancer Institute - Cite This Source - This Definition
Browse Related Terms: apoptosis, biomarker, glycan, micromolar, molecular diagnosis, molecular mass, molecular pathway, programmed cell death, signaling pathway, signature molecule

All > Science > Biotechnology and Genetics > Food Biotechnology

A genetic marker which is assayed at the DNA level.
UN Food and Agriculture Organization - Cite This Source - This Definition
Browse Related Terms: anonymous DNA marker, bulked segregant analysis, comparative mapping, comparative positional candidate gene, dominant selectable marker, Genetic marker, linked gene, linked marker, Linked genes/markers, Marker, marker-assisted introgression, marker-assisted selection, marker gene, MAS, monomorphic, positional candidate gene, positional cloning, positive selectable marker, pUC, Reverse genetics

molecular mass - permalink - collapse

All > Medicine > Cancer

The sum of the atomic masses of all atoms in a molecule, based on a scale in which the atomic masses of hydrogen, carbon, nitrogen, and oxygen are 1, 12, 14, and 16, respectively. For example, the molecular mass of water, which has two atoms of hydrogen and one atom of oxygen, is 18 (i.e., 2 + 16).
National Cancer Institute - Cite This Source - This Definition
Browse Related Terms: apoptosis, biomarker, glycan, micromolar, molecular diagnosis, molecular marker, molecular pathway, programmed cell death, signaling pathway, signature molecule

molecular medicine - permalink - collapse

All > Medicine > Cancer

(muh-LEH-kyoo-ler MEH-dih-sin) A branch of medicine that develops ways to diagnose and treat disease by understanding the way genes, proteins, and other cellular molecules work. Molecular medicine is based on research that shows how certain genes, molecules, and cellular functions may become abnormal in diseases such as cancer.
National Cancer Institute - Cite This Source - This Definition
Browse Related Terms: atypical hyperplasia, benign proliferative breast disease, cerebellar hemangioblastoma, HPV, human papillomavirus, intraductal papilloma, Kaposi sarcoma, molecular risk assessment

All > Science > Biotechnology and Genetics > Human Genome

The treatment of injury or disease at the molecular level. Examples include the use of DNA-based diagnostic tests or medicine derived from DNA sequence information.
Human Genome Project - Cite This Source - This Definition
Browse Related Terms: Confidentiality, Gene testing, genetic counseling, genetic screening, informed consent, non-directiveness, Privacy, risk communication

molecular pathway - permalink - collapse

All > Medicine > Cancer

(muh-LEH-kyoo-ler Ã¢ÂÂ¦) A series of actions among molecules in a cell that leads to a certain end point or cell function.
National Cancer Institute - Cite This Source - This Definition
Browse Related Terms: apoptosis, biomarker, glycan, micromolar, molecular diagnosis, molecular marker, molecular mass, programmed cell death, signaling pathway, signature molecule

molecular pharming - permalink - collapse

All > Science > Biotechnology and Genetics > Food Biotechnology

See: biopharming.
UN Food and Agriculture Organization - Cite This Source - This Definition
Browse Related Terms: chaperonin, Dalton, kDa, megaDalton, molecular chaperone

molecular risk assessment - permalink - collapse

All > Medicine > Cancer

A procedure in which biomarkers (for example, biological molecules or changes in tumor cell DNA) are used to estimate a person's risk for developing cancer. Specific biomarkers may be linked to particular types of cancer.
National Cancer Institute - Cite This Source - This Definition
Browse Related Terms: atypical hyperplasia, benign proliferative breast disease, cerebellar hemangioblastoma, HPV, human papillomavirus, intraductal papilloma, Kaposi sarcoma, molecular medicine

molecule - permalink - collapse

All > Medicine > Cancer

The smallest particle of a substance that has all of the physical and chemical properties of that substance. Molecules are made up of one or more atoms. If they contain more than one atom, the atoms can be the same (an oxygen molecule has two oxygen atoms) or different (a water molecule has two hydrogen atoms and one oxygen atom). Biological molecules, such as proteins and DNA, can be made up of many thousands of atoms.
National Cancer Institute - Cite This Source - This Definition
Browse Related Terms: DNA methylase, DNA methyltransferase, Enzyme, intercalator, phase II detoxification, thymidylate synthase