5.2: asexual reproduction

Question 1

asexual production

Answer 1

reproduction that requires only one parent and produces offspring that are genetic copies of the parent.

Question 2

binary fission

Answer 2

small one celled eukaryotic organisms like amoeba reproduce by binary fission. in binary fission a single parent cell replicates its genetic material and divides into two equal parts.

Question 3

budding

Answer 3

multicellular organisms, such as hydras and sponges use budding. theses multicellular organisms may develop an outgrowth or bud. the bud may detach from the parent and become a new indivisual or remain attached.

Question 4

fragmentation

Answer 4

some animals and many plants can reproduce by fragmentation. if an organism breaks apart as a result of injury, each fragment then develops into a clone of its parent.

Question 5

vegetative reproduction

Answer 5

vegetative reproduction occurs when special cells usually in plant stems and plant roots divide repeatedly to form structures that will eventually develop into a plant identical to its parent.

Question 6

spore formation

Answer 6

some bacteria, micro-organisms and fungi such as bread mold can reproduce asexually by forming single celled spores. a spore is a reproductive cell that grows into a new individual by mitosis.

Question 7

asexual reproduction advantages:

Answer 7

1. large numbers of offspring are reproduced very quickly from only one parent, when conditions are favourable.
2. finding a mate id not required.
3. large numbers of organisms mean that species may survive when conditions or number of the predators change.

Question 8

asexual reproduction disadvantages:

Answer 8

1. offspring are genetic clones. a negative mutation can make asexually produced organisms susceptible to disease and can destroy large numbers of offspring
2. some methods of asexual reproduction produce offspring that are close together and compete for food and space.
3. unfavourable conditions such as extreme temperatures can wipe out entire colonies.

Question 9

reproductive cloning

Answer 9

reproductive cloning is also called adult DNA cloning. the purpose of this type of cloning is to produce a genetic duplicate of an existing or previously existing organism with desirable qualities.

Question 10

therapeutic cloning

Answer 10

therapeutic cloning is used to solve health problems. both human embryonic stem cells and adult stem cells can be used for this purpose. stem cells: are cells that have the potential to become many different types of cells. embryonic stem cells: are the most desirable for therapeutic cloning because they can become anyone of our 200 types of body cells.