Cell division
hideCell division is a process by which a cell, called the parent cell, divides into two or more cells, called daughter cells. Cell division is usually a small segment of a larger cell cycle. This type of cell division in eukaryotes is known as mitosis, and leaves the daughter cell capable of dividing again. The corresponding sort of cell division in prokaryotes is known as binary fission. In another type of cell division present only in eukaryotes, called meiosis, a cell is permanently transformed into a gamete and cannot divide again until fertilization. For simple unicellular organisms such as the amoeba, one cell division is equivalent to reproduction-- an entire new organism is created. On a larger scale, mitotic cell division can create progeny from multicellular organisms, such as plants that grow from cuttings. Cell division also enables sexually reproducing organisms to develop from the one-celled zygote, which itself was produced by cell division from gametes. And after growth, cell division allows for continual construction and repair of the organism. A human being's body experiences about 10,000 trillion cell divisions in a lifetime.
The primary concern of cell division is the maintenance of the original cell's genome. Before division can occur, the genomic information which is stored in chromosomes must be replicated, and the duplicated genome separated cleanly between cells. A great deal of cellular infrastructure is involved in keeping genomic information consistent between "generations".
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News tagged with cell division
Cell division study resolves 50-year-old-debate, may aid cancer research
Biology /
Sep 03, 2008 |
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A new study at Oregon State University has finally resolved a controversy that cellular biologists have been arguing over for nearly 50 years, with findings that may aid research on everything from birth defects and genetic ...
New cell division mechanism discovered
Biology /
Oct 28, 2008 |
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A novel cell division mechanism has been discovered in a microorganism that thrives in hot acid. The finding may also result in insights into key processes in human cells, and in a better understanding of the main evolutionary ...
Researchers run rings round cell division
Biology /
Jul 03, 2008 |
4.6 / 5 (13) |
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A puzzle in the control of cell division, one of the most fundamental processes in all biology, has been unravelled by Oxford University researchers.
MIT engineers show how tiny cell proteins generate force to 'walk'
Biology /
Nov 24, 2008 |
4.4 / 5 (13) |
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(PhysOrg.com) -- MIT researchers have shown how a cell motor protein exerts the force to move, enabling functions such as cell division.
Researchers gain new insight on wonder of cell division
Biology /
Dec 04, 2008 |
4.5 / 5 (11) |
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Biologists have discovered a mechanism that is critical to cytokinesis -- nature's completion of mitosis, where a cell divides into two identical daughter cells.
Adult stem cells activated in mammalian brain
Jul 24, 2008 |
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(PhysOrg.com) -- Adult stem cells originate in a different part of the brain than is commonly believed, and with proper stimulation they can produce new brain cells to replace those lost to disease or injury, ...
Stem-cell sentry sounds the alarm to maintain balance between cancer and aging
Oct 15, 2008 |
5 / 5 (8) |
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(PhysOrg.com) -- Like a sentry guarding the castle walls, a molecular messenger inside adult stem cells sounds the alarm when it senses hazards that could allow the invasion of an insidious enemy: Cancer. The alarm bell halts ...
Origin of root offshoots revealed
Biology /
Oct 23, 2008 |
5 / 5 (8) |
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VIB researchers at Ghent University (Belgium) have discovered the substance that governs the formation of root offshoots in plants, and how it works. Root offshoots are vitally important for plants – and for farmers. Plants ...
Key to 'curing' obesity may lie in worms that destroy their own fat
Biology /
Dec 08, 2008 |
4.4 / 5 (9) |
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(PhysOrg.com) -- A previously unknown mutation discovered in a common roundworm holds the promise of new treatments for obesity in humans, McGill University researchers say. Their study was published Dec. ...
Scientists identify possible cause of endometriosis
Aug 05, 2008 |
3.9 / 5 (8) |
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Endometriosis is a condition whereby patches of the inner lining of the womb appear in parts of the body other than the womb cavity. It can cause severe pain and affects approximately 15% of women of reproductive ...
Some mice stem cells divide in unexpected ways
Aug 14, 2009 |
4.8 / 5 (6) |
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(PhysOrg.com) -- Using new genetic tools, Cornell researchers have found that some stem cells in mice behave dramatically different than in fruit flies, where most of the pioneering stem cell work has been ...
The Nobel Prize and Pond Scum as a 'Model' Organism
Oct 15, 2009 |
4.4 / 5 (5) |
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A man is a man and a mouse is a mouse, but if you talk to a few biomedical scientists about their research, at least one is likely to spring the term “mouse model” on you.
Brainy genes, not brawn, key to success on mussel beach
Biology /
Oct 09, 2008 |
4.2 / 5 (5) |
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It's hard being a mussel: you have to worry about hungry starfish and even hungrier humans, not to mention an environment that can change your body temperature 50 degrees Fahrenheit in just a few hours.
Dividing cells find their middle by following a protein 'contour map'
Biology /
Jun 30, 2008 |
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Self-organization keeps schools of fish, flocks of birds and colonies of termites in sync. It’s also, according to new research, the way cells regulate the final stage of cell division. Scientists at Rockefeller University ...
Is this the beginning of the end of plant breeding?
Jun 09, 2009 |
4.3 / 5 (4) |
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No human is a clone of their parents but the same cannot be said for other living things. While your DNA is a combination of half your mother and half your father, other species do things differently. The advantage of clonal ...
