---------------------------------------------------------------------- The Learning Kingdom's Cool Word of the Day for April 30, 1999 ---------------------------------------------------------------------- cytokine [n. SY-toe-kyn] ---------------------------------------------------------------------- A cytokine is a substance that causes living cells to grow and divide. Some cytokines are hormones that circulate in the blood, and others are released from individual cells, causing their neighbors to grow. If cytokines get out of control for some reason, they can contribute to conditions like cancer, in which cells grow without limit. Like many scientific words, "cytokine" is a compound of Greek or Latin roots. "Cyto-" is a scientific prefix that means "of a cell," from the Greek kutos (hollow vessel). The second part, "-kine," is from the Greek kinein (to move). Another word that uses the same two roots is cytokinesis (the splitting of a cell during reproduction). More "cellular" words: cytology: the study of cells cytoplasm: the living fluid that fills cells cytolysis: the destruction of a cell cytoskeleton: the internal protein framework of a cell erythrocyte: a red blood cell Today's sponsor: The Intel Club. Let Intel Bring Your PC to Life! Join the Intel Club FREE & experience the excitement of: - Sneak Previews of games & software - Free screensavers & games - Tips & Tricks to optimize your PC - New software It's FUN & FREE. Join NOW: <http://www.intel.com/home/club/index2.htm?iid_itm:02PE01&> ---------------------------------------------------------------------- Cool Word of the Day list membership: 87,250 ---------------------------------------------------------------------- To subscribe, visit http://www.tlk-lists.com/join/ To unsubscribe, visit http://www.tlk-lists.com/change/ To become a sponsor, visit http://www.tlk-lists.com/sponsor/ ---------------------------------------------------------------------- Copyright (c) 1999, The Learning Kingdom, Inc. http://www.LearningKingdom.com ----------------------------------------------------------------------