Coenenchyma

/ˌsiːnənˈkɪmə/ noun

Definition

Plural of coenenchym; the shared connecting tissue in colonial marine animals like corals that allows individual polyps to function as one organism.

Etymology

From Greek 'koinos' (common) + 'enchyma' (tissue) + '-a' (plural suffix). This is the standard biological term for coral colony tissue.

Kelly Says

Under a microscope, coenenchyma looks like a complex network of connections—each coral polyp is like a cell in a larger body, and the coenenchyma is what binds them together.

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