The stages of mitosis in detail
A type of cell division which produces daughter cells identical to the parent. is a type of cell division in which a diploid body cell copies itself and finally divides into two identical diploid Cells formed from the division of a cell.. The daughter cells are An organism that is genetically identical to another organism. of each other. Every base pair of their Deoxyribonucleic acid. The material inside the nucleus of cells, carrying the genetic information of a living being. is identical.
The stages of the cell cycle are:
| Stage | What happens |
| Interphase | The cell spends most of its life in this phase. The DNA in chromosomes copies itself ready for mitosis. |
| Prophase | The DNA in chromosomes and their copies condenses to become more visible. The membrane around the nucleus disappears. |
| Metaphase | Chromosomes and their copies line up in the middle of the cell. |
| Anaphase | Chromosomes and their copies are pulled to different ends of the cell. |
| Telophase | New membranes form around the chromosomes at each end of the cell. |
| Cytokinesis | The cell membrane pinches in and eventually divides into two daughter cells. |
| Stage | Interphase |
|---|---|
| What happens | The cell spends most of its life in this phase. The DNA in chromosomes copies itself ready for mitosis. |
| Stage | Prophase |
|---|---|
| What happens | The DNA in chromosomes and their copies condenses to become more visible. The membrane around the nucleus disappears. |
| Stage | Metaphase |
|---|---|
| What happens | Chromosomes and their copies line up in the middle of the cell. |
| Stage | Anaphase |
|---|---|
| What happens | Chromosomes and their copies are pulled to different ends of the cell. |
| Stage | Telophase |
|---|---|
| What happens | New membranes form around the chromosomes at each end of the cell. |
| Stage | Cytokinesis |
|---|---|
| What happens | The cell membrane pinches in and eventually divides into two daughter cells. |
The stages of mitosis are: prophase, metaphase, anaphase and telophase.
Only two pairs of The structure made of DNA that codes for all the characteristics of an organism. are shown in the diagrams below. There are 23 pairs of chromosomes in a diploid human body cell.