mitosis/meiosis Flashcards
what is mitosis?
cell division which occurs in eukaryotic organisms. in which the maternal cell divides to form 2 genetically identical daughter cells. allows replacement, growth, repair of lost cells and so on…
mitosis passes through 6 phases what are these?
- interphase
- prophase
-> prometaphase - metaphase
- anaphase
- telophase
- cytokinesis
what is interphase
cell going about its normal business
G1 -
S DNA is duplicated (synthesised) during this phase
G2
what is prophase
DNA condenses to become chromosomes which are visible under a microscope. centrioles move to opposite ends of the cell and extend microtubules out. (mitotic spindle) the centromeres at the centre of the chromosomes also begin to extend fibres outwards
prometaphase?
- nuclear membrane disappears, microtubules attach centrioles to centromeres and start pulling the chromosomes
metaphase?
chromosome becomes aligned in the middle of the cell
anaphase?
chromosome pairs split (centromeres) are cut and one of each pair (sister chromatids) move to either end of the cell
telophase
sister chromatids reach opp ends of the cell and become less condensed and no longer visible, new membranes form around the new nuclei for the daughter cells
cytokinesis
an actin ring around the centre of the cell shrinks and splits the cell in two
interphase
cell going about normal daily business
preparing for and doubling its DNA to form pairs of chromosomes
if there is an error in mitotic division what can that mean for new daughter cell?
- the error will be carried on to that cell
- an error in one cell can go on and be a error in a huge no of cells. chromosomal damage e.g. trisomy 21 -> down syndrome
what happens during meiosis?
- a single cell divides twice to form 4 new cell
- these cells have half the normal no of chromosomes (haploid)
- method of producing spermatozoa and oocytes
- when an egg is fertilised by a sperm the chromosomes will combine to form a cell with the normal no of chromosomes
meosis I?
first division of meosis
during meosis I a cell passes through phases v similar to those of mitosis but w significant differences - but w some significant differences
at the end of meosis I how many chromosomes does each cell have?
23 chromosomes and each chromosome has 2 chromatids (haploid)
what is the key event of meosis I?
separation of homologous chromosomes, rather than the separation of sister chromatids as occurs during mitosis.
also in meosis I prophase I stage there is homologous recombination whereby the homologous chromosomes exchange DNA