Title: fontanelle
Long Title: IUPAC Gold Book - fontanelle
DOI: 10.1351/goldbook.10734
Status: current

Definition
Any of several soft spots in specific locations on the skull of the newborn where the bones have not yet fused and the brain is covered by skin and a tough membrane.

Related Terms
- cranial suture: https://goldbook.iupac.org/terms/view/10564
- membrane: https://goldbook.iupac.org/terms/view/11555

Source
- PAC, 2016, 88, 713. 'Glossary of terms used in developmental and reproductive toxicology (IUPAC Recommendations 2016)' on page 757 (https://doi.org/10.1515/pac-2015-1202)

Other Outputs
- html: https://goldbook.iupac.org/terms/view/10734/html
- json: https://goldbook.iupac.org/terms/view/10734/json
- xml: https://goldbook.iupac.org/terms/view/10734/xml

Citation: Citation: 'fontanelle' in IUPAC Compendium of Chemical Terminology, 5th ed. International Union of Pure and Applied Chemistry; 2025. Online version 5.0.0, 2025. 10.1351/goldbook.10734
License: The IUPAC Gold Book is licensed under Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike CC BY-SA 4.0 International (https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/4.0/) for individual terms.
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Disclaimer: The International Union of Pure and Applied Chemistry (IUPAC) is continuously reviewing and, where needed, updating terms in the Compendium of Chemical Terminology (the IUPAC Gold Book). Users of these terms are encouraged to include the version of a term with its use and to check regularly for updates to term definitions that you are using.
Accessed: 2026-05-10T12:52:46+00:00