Mitosis and Cell Cycle
This section provides an overview of the mitosis process in cell division step by step and the cell cycle. The cell cycle consists of two main stages: interphase and mitosis. Mitosis is crucial for growth, repair, and reproduction in organisms.
During mitosis, a diploid parent cell produces two genetically identical daughter cells. Interphase precedes mitosis and involves the production of extra subcellular parts and DNA replication.
Definition: Asexual reproduction is a process that uses one parent to create offspring that are clones, relying on mitosis.
Asexual reproduction is faster than sexual reproduction but results in no variation among offspring.
Highlight: The 4 stages of mitosis are not explicitly mentioned in this section, but they are typically prophase, metaphase, anaphase, and telophase.
Growth in Animals
Animal growth involves an increase in size due to an increase in the number or size of cells. There are two main stages in animal growth:
- Cell division
- Cell differentiation
Definition: Cell differentiation is the process where cells become specialized for specific functions.
Growth in Plants
Plant growth occurs in three stages:
- Cell division
- Elongation
- Differentiation
Growth in plants can be measured by height, leaf surface area, or mass. Percentage change is often used for calculations.
Highlight: Plants have meristems, which are groups of cells at the ends of shoots and roots that divide rapidly by mitosis.