Republic of the Philippines

Department of Education
Region III
DIVISION OF CITY SCHOOLS
SAN JOSE DEL MONTE CITY
MUZON HIGH SCHOOL
Sarmiento Homes, Muzon, City of San Jose del Monte

Name: _________________________________________ Date: _______________

Cell division is the process in which one cell, called the parent cell, divides to form new cells,
referred to as daughter cells. For you to be able to understand cell division here are some important terms
that you should know and take a look at the diagram that follows.
a. Chromosome - an organized structure of DNA and protein found in cells.
b. Deoxyribonucleic Acid (DNA) - like a recipe book which holds the instructions for making all the proteins
in our bodies.
c. Organelle - a specialized sub-unit within a
cell that has a specific function such as:
mitochondrion, golgi bodies, lysosome,
vacuole, etc.
d. Karyokinesis - division of the nucleus of the
cell.
e. Cytokinesis - division of the cytoplasm.
f. Diploid number (2N) - the cell contains two sets of chromosomes, half from the father and another half
from the mother.
For the cell to reproduce, it must undergo a sequence of phases - a
life of the cell from the beginning of one cell division to the next division
which we called the Cell Cycle. The Cell Cycle has two main stages:
1. Interphase – also known as chromatin; here, the chromosomes are long
and extended.
2. Cell Division – it is where chromosome become condensed and thickened
and eventually divides into daughter cells.

Interphase
Eukaryotic cells undergo series of division with an in-between period of rest called interphase.
During this stage, the cell does not divide, it merely grows. The chromosome double or replicates itself
because the DNA molecules contained in the chromosomes produces an exact copy of itself. Interphase is
composed of the following phases.
1. G1 phase: Cell growth. This stage starts from the formation of a new cell until it begins to replicate its
DNA. It is characterized as protein and ribonucleic acid (RNA) synthesis. RNA which is synthesized based on
the DNA is then used to synthesize protein.
2. S phase: DNA replication. The chromosomes are duplicated in preparation for the next cell division.
3. G2 phase: Preparing for cell division. A period of rapid cell growth to prepare for cell division. When G2 is
completed, the cell enters the M phase (mitosis and meiosis) and begins the process of cell division.
Cell Division
Alternating with the interphase is the cell division phase.
There are two types of cell division in eukaryotic cells: mitosis and
meiosis.

MITOSIS
Parts of a chromosome
Mitosis is a type of nuclear division that produces two new “daughter” nuclei, each containing the
same number of chromosomes as the parent nucleus.
To simplify, let us illustrate mitosis of a cell containing only four chromosomes. Assume that this
parent cell is diploid; thus, it has a diploid chromosome number 2N=4, where N refers to the number of
kinds of chromosomes, and 2 refers to the number of times each kind of chromosome is represented. For
example, N=2, which means there are 2 kinds of chromosomes. Following are the four stages of mitosis.
▪ Prophase
The beginning of mitosis involves these changes:
 The chromosomes coil up into rod-shaped
structures.
The chromosomes (2N=4) are double-
stranded.
 Nucleoli and the nuclear membrane disappear.
 Spindle fibers are formed.
▪ Metaphase
Metaphase is characterized by this event:
 The rod-shaped double-stranded chromosomes (2N=4) arrange themselves at the equatorial plate,
with the kinetochores attaching the chromosomes to the spindle fibers.
▪ Anaphase
Anaphase involves these events:
 The kinetochores divide. The four-double stranded chromosomes become eight single-stranded
chromosomes.
 The rod-shaped single-stranded chromosomes migrate to the poles.
▪ Telophase
Telophase involves these changes:
 The chromosomes uncoil.
 The nucleoli and nuclear membrane reappear.
 The spindle fibers disappear.
Because of these events, telophase has been described as “reverse prophase”. Finally, when
cytokinesis produces two “daughter” cells with one nucleus each, each daughter cells has four single-
stranded chromosomes, or 2N=4.
Cytokinesis may or may not occur. If it does, it happens simultaneously with the last stage of
nuclear division and uninucleate daughter cells (cells with one nucleus each) are produced. If cytokinesis
does not follow nuclear division, cells become multinucleate, or contain more than one nucleus. Epithelial
cells on the inner linings of you cheek and walls of your digestive organs are made up of uninucleate cells.
The cells of your skeletal muscles, on the other hand, are multinucleate.

MEIOSIS
The number of chromosomes normally remains the same with the species. This suggests that a
different kind of cell division must take place in an individual. This kind of cell division is called meiosis,
from a Greek word which means “to make smaller”. Meiosis reduces the chromosome number in half. It
takes place in plants and animals whenever gametes, or sex cells, are formed through the process called
gametogenesis.
In meiosis, the cell undergoes two rounds of cell division to produce four daughter cells, each with
half the chromosome number as the original parent cell and with a unique set of genetic material as a
result of exchange of chromosome segments during the process of crossing over. Meiosis consists of two
divisions: meiosis I and meiosis II.
The first phases of meiosis I is composed of the following:
▪ Prophase I
 Each chromosome is made up of two long threads of sister chromatics
as a result of replication during the S phase of the cell cycle. The
chromosomes begin to pair off. Pairs of chromosomes are called
homologous chromosomes. Crossing over takes place through the
formation of a cross-linkage of the segments called chiasma. Sister
chromatid may no longer be identical with each other based in the
genetic material they contain. The chromosomes begin to uncoil and
dispense the nucleus.
▪ Metaphase I
 The paired chromosomes separate and move to opposite poles of the cell.
▪ Anaphase I
 Spindle fibers form and attach to the centromeres of the chromosomes. The homologous
chromosomes separate from each other completely and start their movement toward the poles of
the cells as they are pulled by the spindle fibers. As the centromere of each chromosome does not
divide, the sister chromatids remain together.
▪ Telophase I
 A nuclear membrane forms around the chromosome at each pole. Cytokinesis follows and two
daughter cells are formed. Each cell now has only half the chromosomes because only one
chromosome from each pair goes to the daughter cell. This is called the haploid condition in
contrast to the diploid condition at the beginning of meiosis I, where each chromosome pair is
intact. Telophase I is followed by interphase II.
At this point each chromosome still has 2 sister chromatids and is therefore necessary for the cells
to undergo another round of division.
The second meiotic division known as Meiosis II is composed of
prophase II, metaphase II, anaphase II, and telophase II which are all
identical with the mitotic phases. Cleavage of cytoplasm in cytokinesis
results into 4 cells, two from the each daughter cells from meiosis I, with
one half the diploid chromosomes number and with one sister chromatid
for each chromosome.

Importance of Meiosis
All organisms have diploid number of chromosomes. Without Meiosis,
the chromosomal number will continue to increase. Hence, meiosis
ensures that all the chromosome number of organisms remains the same
generation after generation. Meiosis also safeguards that each daughter
cell receives a copy of each kind of kind of chromosomes; thus, each
daughter cell would receive each kind of genes. The occurrence of crossing-over and the independent-
assortment of chromosomes during fertilization ensure that the chromosomes are distributed to the
daughter in different combinations, bringing about remarkable variations in the characteristics of the
organisms. These variations in characteristics are very helpful for the organisms to adapt in their changing
environment.
A. Direction: Choose the letter of the correct answer.
1. What do you call the pairing of homologous chromosomes in Prophase I?
a. crossing-over
b. cytokinesis
c. synapsis
d. variation
2. Which of the following BEST describes meiosis as a type of cell division?
a. It involves the division of body cells.
b. It involves the division of sperm cell and egg cell.
c. It is the division of sex cells to produce haploid daughter cells.
d. It is the division of sex cells to produce diploid daughter cells.
3. Which of the following is the correct sequence of mitosis?
a. Metaphase, Prophase, Anaphase, Telophase
b. Prophase, Metaphase, Anaphase, Telophase
c. Anaphase, Prophase, Telophase, Metaphase
d. Telophase, Anaphase, Metaphase, Prophase
4. In what stage of cell cycle does the cell increase in size in preparation for the cell division?
a. G1
b. G2
c. M Phase
d. S Phase
5. Which parts of the cell are involved in cell division?
a. cell membrane and nucleus
b. cell membrane and cytoplasm
c. cytoplasm and nucleus
d. nucleus and cell wall

B. Direction: Label the stages involves in mitosis.

1. __________ 2. __________ 3. __________ 4. __________ 5.

C. Direction: Read carefully the following statements. Check the “YES” column if it describes the
importance of meiosis and “NO” if it is not.
YES NO
1. If sex cells won’t divide through Meiosis, the chromosomal number will continue
to increase.
2. Meiosis ensures that all the chromosome number of organism’s changes from
generation to generation.
3. Meiosis safeguards that each daughter cell receives a copy of each kind of kind of
chromosomes; thus, each daughter cell would receive each kind of genes.
4. The crossing over and independent assortment bring about remarkable variations
in the characteristics of the organisms.
5. Variations in characteristics among organisms are not important in adapting to
the changing environment.