Cell Division

Divisions of Division

By the time you finish reading this introductory sentence, over 50,000 of the cells in your body will die and be replaced with new cells. To me, this is astounding. Not to brag, but we are truly amazing creatures. Did you know that for about half an hour, you were a single celled organism? To think that you grew up to what you are today. How does it make you feel that we have something in common with malaria? Because of these microscopic organisms, you can continue reading if you like.

One of the reasons our bodies are able to accomplish great things, is because of our abilities to constantly create new cells. Cell division is called mitosis. There are two divisions of mitosis. The first stage, mitosis, involves the division of the nucleus. The nucleus is what holds all of the genetic information of the cell. The second stage is called cytokinesis. During this stage, the cell must divide the cytoplasm. The cytoplasm is the site of most cellular activity. It can be thought of as the “factory of the cell”.

As if there aren’t enough divisions as it is, the mitosis phase is divided again into five other phases. The first of the phases is called interphase. During this stage, cellular organelles double in number, the DNA replicates, and protein synthesis occurs. Although this whole process occurs at remarkable speeds, interphase is the longest of the phases.

The next four phases are crucial to cell division. Prophase is when the two centrosomes of the cell, each with its pair of centrioles, move to opposite "poles" of the cell. In metaphase, all the dyads have reached an equilibrium position midway between the poles called the metaphase plate. The chromosomes are at their most compact at this time. The next phase is called anaphase. During this process, the sister kinetochores suddenly separate and each moves to its respective pole dragging its attached chromatid (chromosome) behind it. The final of these four phases...