Biophores
Historical document, translated for reference. It reflects medical knowledge of the 1920s–30s and is not medical advice.
Summary
Biophores is a historical term proposed by Carl Nägeli for hypothetical microscopic units of life that purportedly make up living protoplasm. In August Weismann's theory of heredity, biophores were defined as the bearers of specific cell properties that combine to form determinants.
Encyclopedia entry (1928–1936)
BIOPHORES (from the Greek bios - life and phorein - to carry; synonyms: plasmomes, pangenemes, etc.), a term introduced by Nägeli to designate those hypothetical minute units of life from which, according to a number of biologists, living protoplasm consists. This term is used in various theories of plasma structure; in Weismann's theory of heredity, biophores are called the bearers of certain properties of the cell; the totality of biophores forms the so-called "determinant" which, according to Weismann, characterizes a given kind of cell.
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Cite this page
“Biophores.” Soviet Medical Encyclopedia. English translation of Bolshaya Meditsinskaya Entsiklopediya, 1st ed. (Moscow, 1928–1936), ed. N. A. Semashko. https://sovietmedicalencyclopedia.pages.dev/article/biophores/