The process by which cells become specialized and take on different structures and functions as an organism develops.
Greek 'kytos' (cell) combined with Latin 'differentia' (difference) and '-ation' (process). A modern term reflecting how developmental biologists understand cell specialization during growth.
One of biology's biggest mysteries is how a single fertilized egg becomes a human with hundreds of different cell types—cytodifferentiation is the process underlying that magic, and scientists still don't fully understand all the mechanisms controlling it.
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