Assimilation (biology)

Assimilation (from similis, lat.= similar), in biology, designates the process of the transformation of external substancesand materials into substances and materials internal to the body. Examples of assimilation are:

• By mean of photosynthesis, carbon dioxideand waterare transformed into a number of organic moleculesin plantcells.
• Nitrogen fixationfrom the soil into organic molecules by symbioticbacteriawhich live in the rootsof certain plants, such as Leguminosae.
• The absorptionof nutrientsinto the body after digestionin the intestineand its transformation in biological tissuesand fluids

See also

• Anabolism
• Biochemistryde:Assimilation (Biologie)

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