Category: N

The northern part of North America.  

The long, narrow leaf of some conifers. A thin metal instrument with a sharp point at one end and a hole at the other for attaching a thread, used for sewing up surgical incisions. The hollow pointed end of a hypodermic syringe, or the syringe itself. A leaf that is needle-like in form most commonly…

Non-native plants that have adapted successfully to a new environment and reproduce without human help. These plants originally originate from foreign countries (considered ‘aliens’), but they have now become firmly established in our environment as introductions, often escaping from gardens.  

Remaining colorless or merely yellowish in Melzer’s reagent.  

Describes the distance between the gills’ attachment to the cap and the gills’ lower edge when it is less than the thickness of the flesh of the cap. The blood vessel is a narrow channel which takes blood to the tissues.  

Nectary. A small structure, flat to rounded or cuplike that secretes nectar, a sugary sap, as an attractant.  

A woman who has never produced viable offspring. A woman who has not yet had her first baby. The medical designation for a woman who has never given birth to a live baby, often noted on a hospital medical chart as “para 0.” Woman who has never given birth to a viable infant. The term…

The presence of normal bacteria and fungi adapted for living in, and characteristic of, the area considered (e.g., skin, intestine, or vagina). Bacteria that are expected and healthy in the body. Microorganisms including bacteria, protozoa, and fungi that are found on or in specific areas of the body. The skin and mucous membranes of the…

The functioning unit of the kidney or renal tubule. The functional unit of the kidney made up of the glomerulus. Each kidney contains about one million. A tiny structure in the kidney through which fluid is filtered. The basic structural unit of the kidney. The unit functions to filter waste products from the blood for…

The formation of new blood vessels, e.g., in the retina, in inflamed tissue or in a malignant tumor.