quasisymmetry
quasisymmetry noun: a mapping that preserves shape but allows size to change in a well-defined manner.
Noun
quasisymmetry (countable and uncountable, plural quasisymmetries)
- A mapping that preserves shape but allows size to change in a well-defined manner.
- A pattern in which many copies of a viral protein form a huge spherical coating, where each subunit has an almost symmetrical arrangement with its neighbors.
- So-called “quasisymmetry” occurs if all subunits are chemically identical but have two slightly different conformations so that slightly different contacts can be made.2013, G.E. Schulz, R.H. Schirmer, Principles of Protein Structure, page 99
- Evolution blindly explores every possibility, and as more and more structures of viral capsids have been studied, numerous exceptions to classic quasisymmetry have been found.2016, David S. Goodsell, Atomic Evidence: Seeing the Molecular Basis of Life, page 72
Forms of quasisymmetry
| plural | quasisymmetries |
|---|
Origin of quasisymmetry
From quasi- + symmetry.
Questions about quasisymmetry
- What does quasisymmetry mean?
- Quasisymmetry means a mapping that preserves shape but allows size to change in a well-defined manner.
- What part of speech is quasisymmetry?
- Quasisymmetry is a noun.
- What is the plural of quasisymmetry?
- The plural of quasisymmetry is quasisymmetries.
Words near quasisymmetry in the dictionary
Source and license
Adapted from Wiktionary: quasisymmetry (page history and authors). Text available under the Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 4.0 license. Word.ws reformatted the entry and added links. Wiktionary data of 2026-09-02.
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Cite this entry: “quasisymmetry.” Word.ws, https://word.ws/quasisymmetry. Based on Wiktionary, CC BY-SA 4.0.