Medical Definition of Galvanotaxis
1.
The directed movement of cells induced by an applied voltage. This movement is almost always directed toward the cathode, occurs at fields around 1 mV/mm and is argued to be involved in cell guidance during morphogenesis and in the repair of wounds.
The term galvanotropism is used for neurons, since the cell body remain stationary and the neurites grow toward the cathode. Note that these processes involve cell locomotion and are distinct from cell electrophoresis.
This entry appears with permission from the Dictionary of Cell and Molecular Biology
(11 Mar 2008)
Lexicographical Neighbors of Galvanotaxis
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