Stem Cells Flashcards
What are stem cells.
Unspecialised somatic cells which can self renew and differentiate into specialised cells.
What are the two types of Stem Cell
Adult and Embryonic
What is happening during cellular differentiation
When an unspecialised cell becomes specialised to have particular structures and functions
What type of division do somatic cells do to make more somatic cells?
Mitosis
How does a cell become differentiated?
Some genes are switched on and some are switched off which means only a limited amount of genes are expressed.
What are tissue adult stem cells used for?
Growth and repair and renewal of cells found in that tissue.
What type of stem cells can be described as multipotent? Explain what this means
Tissue (adult) stem cells. Multipotent means that the cells have a narrower differentiating potential….they can only develop into cells related from that tissu
Embryonic stem cells are described as pluripotent. What does this mean?
They can differentiate into all cell types of the body.
What form of cell division do germline cells divide by to form more germline cells?
Mitosis (germline cells are like body cells which are used to form gametes) (they contain 46 chromosomes)
What form of cell division do germline cells divide by to form haploid gametes?
Meiosis
