— desmidian , adj.
/dez"mid/ , n.
any single-celled freshwater algae of the family Desmidiaceae, characterized by a division of the body into mirror-image halves joined by a bridge containing the nucleus, and having a spiny or bristly exterior: sometimes forming into colonies or branching filaments.
[ 1860-65; Desmidium a genus of the family desm ( ós ) a band, chain (cf. deîn to fasten) + NL -idium -IDIUM ]