noun
- A body cavity formed by outpouching of the embryonic gut; the coelom in animals that develop through enterocoely.
Usage: biology; embryology; technical
Examples
- In echinoderms, the enterocoel develops from pouches that bud off the archenteron.
- The formation of an enterocoel is characteristic of deuterostome development.
- Marine biologists study the enterocoel to understand how body cavities form in different animal phyla.
- The enterocoel eventually gives rise to the peritoneal cavity in vertebrates.