noun
self-replication; self-duplication
Technical term used in biology, computer science, and related fields to describe an entity's ability to make copies of itself.
DNAは自己複製する能力を持つ。
DNA has the ability to self-replicate.
コンピュータウイルスは自己複製するプログラムだ。
A computer virus is a self-replicating program.
複製 means 'reproduction' or 'duplication' in general, while 自己複製 specifically refers to self-replication.
Compound of 自己 (self) and 複製 (replication). The exact historical derivation is uncertain, but the term is a straightforward Sino-Japanese technical coinage.