Key vocabulary:

Mitosis: reproductive process of cells, the cells nucleus divides so each new cell will have the same type and number of chromosomes as the parent cell

Chromosomes: threadlike structures found in the nucleus of animal and plant cells; chromosomes can be seen only when a cell is dividing; chromosomes are made up of proteins and DNA

DNA: Deoxyribonucleic acid; the molecule that carries the hereditary information of the cell, it is the chemical blueprint for living things. It carries coded information that determines the features of an organism and ensures that these are copied and passed on to any offspring.

Nucleus: has chromosomes that contain complex chemical information that directs all the celll;s activities, a membrane-enclosed command center in the cytoplasm of animal and plant cells.

Centromere:area where sister chromatids are held together

Cell membrane: flexible, double-layered, outer covering of most cells

chromatid: each of a pair of identical DNA molecules after DNA replication; they are joined at the centromere.

prophase: chromosome condensation

metaphase: alignments of chromosomes in middle plane

anaphase: in this stage, the chormosomes are pullled away from thhe middle to the spindle poles of the cell

telophase:formation of daughter cell

interphase: all the phases of cell growth that are not part of mitosis/cell division

cytoplasm: gel-like material inside the cell membrane of animals and plants; it is constantly moving, most of the cell;s life processes take place in the cytoplasm. .

spindle fibers:fibers that attach to chromosomes and move the chromosomes by pulling homologous chromosomes in opposite directions and pushing the poles apart

daughter cells:replicated cell that copies the original parent cell (new cell)

cytokinesis: splits the cytoplasm of a dividing cell into daughter cells

 

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