Mitosis is a way of making more cells that are genetically the same as the parent cell. It plays an important part in the development of embryos, and it is important for the growth and development of our bodies as well. Mitosis produces new cells, and replaces cells that are old, lost or damaged.
1. Development and growth
After meiosis has produced a gamete, and this has fused with another gamete to form an embryo, the embryo grows using mitosis. This growth continues throughout an organism’s life, in plants, animals, and fungi. In this way, the original chromosomal set is preserved.
2. Cell replacement
This occurs when the original cell is damaged or wounded. New cells are created to replace those that were damaged. Examples of this are the healing of a cut or a broken bone. When old cells die, new ones replace them to ensure continuing functionality.
3. Asexual reproduction
Single-celled organisms and certain multicellular organisms use mitosis for asexual reproduction. This includes reproduction by fragmentation, as in the case of planaria, and reproduction by budding, as in the case of sea anemones. Many plants reproduce using mitosis.
First, we need to understand what meiosis is. Meiosis is the replication of cells that results in each daughter nucleus containing half of the parent cell’s chromosomes. Meiosis is used primarily for the production of gametes, which are incorporated in sexual reproduction. Thus, the main difference between mitosis and meiosis is that mitosis produces somatic (body) cells, which can go on to become part of any bodily tissue, whereas meiosis only produces germ (sex) cells. Organisms which reproduce asexually cannot undergo meiosis, whereas all eukaryotic organisms undergo mitosis. Mitosis and meiosis are similar in that both can only occur in eukaryotic cells. This is because prokaryotic cells do not contain a nucleus within which to begin the processes of mitosis and meiosis. Instead, prokaryotes replicate themselves using binary fission. Both mitosis and meiosis begin with DNA replication in the parent cell to create four sets of chromosomes: in mitosis, these sets are split to form two diploid daughter cells, while in meiosis, these sets are split to form four haploid daughter cells. This is because cells undergo only one division in mitosis, whereas they undergo two divisions in meiosis.
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