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Definition of Xeno- (prefix)
Medically reviewed by Min Clinic Staff | Updated: January 2026
Xeno- (prefix): Foreign or other. As in:
- Xenoantigen -- An antigen that is found in more than one species.
- Xenograft -- A surgical graft of tissue from one species an unlike species, genus or family.
- Xenotransplantation -- Transplantation from one species to a foreign one, e.g., the heart transplant from a baboon to Baby Fae in 1984 in Loma Linda, California.
- Xenotropic virus -- A virus that can grow in the cells of a species foreign to the normal host species.
The origin of "xeno-" is from the Late Latin, from Greek, from "xenos" meaning stranger, guest, or host. Xeno- and xen- are variant forms of the same prefix.