A small channel, groove, or tubule, especially one in bone through which cells extend to communicate with other cells and access nutrients.
From Latin canaliculus, a diminutive of canalis (channel), literally meaning 'little channel.' Widely used in anatomy to describe microscopic structures in bone and other tissues.
The canaliculus was named long before scientists could actually see them—anatomists theorized they must exist because bones stayed alive, and the canaliculi proved it. When microscopes finally revealed them, it was scientific prediction vindicated.
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