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Definition of Hirudo medicinalis
1. Noun. Large European freshwater leech formerly used for bloodletting.
Exact synonyms: Medicinal Leech
Generic synonyms: Bloodsucker, Hirudinean, Leech
Group relationships: Genus Hirudo, Hirudo
Generic synonyms: Bloodsucker, Hirudinean, Leech
Group relationships: Genus Hirudo, Hirudo
Medical Definition of Hirudo medicinalis
1. The medicinal leech. The CNS of this annelid contains a relatively small number of large, identifiable cells. This has made the leech, like the molluscs Aplysia and Helisoma, a chosen preparation for studying nervous system mechanisms at the cellular level. Related species of leeches are the organism of choice for cellular and molecular genetic studies of early development, since the early embryos also contain identifiable cells. This entry appears with permission from the Dictionary of Cell and Molecular Biology (11 Mar 2008)
Lexicographical Neighbors of Hirudo Medicinalis
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