Topic > Mitosis vs. Meiosis: A Look at the Similarities and Differences

Mitosis and Meiosis Compare/ContrastMitosis and meiosis are two different types of cell division in humans and other animals. They have many similarities and some important differences such as what their goal is and slight differences in results after the split. To basically explain mitosis and meiosis, mitosis is the process in which a cell divides in half and produces two new cells identical to the original parent cell. Duplicates the DNA of the parent cell. Mitosis is the normal way a cell divides and is used for growth and repair. Meiosis on the other hand is the process used by sex cells, the cells produced by meiosis only receive half of the DNA chromosomes of the original cell. Mitosis and meiosis are similar in many ways but are also different from each other in important ways. Say no to plagiarism. Get a tailor-made essay on "Why Violent Video Games Shouldn't Be Banned"? Get an Original EssayBoth mitosis and meiosis aim to transmit genetic information from a parent cell to multiple daughter cells. The way these cell division processes do this is by using chromosomes in the cell nuclei. The division process for mitosis has 4 phases while meiosis has 8 phases. Mitosis and meiosis have the same first 4 stages, prophase, metaphase, anaphase and telophase. In Meiosis it duplicates the 4 stages with the only difference occurring in metaphase 2 where before aligning at the center of the cell the chromosomes are aligned in homologous pairs one above the other. After the chromosomes align in the center, they are separated from the spindles that were created in the prophase stage. The end result of mitosis is 2 diploid cells that contain identical genetic information to the parent cell after its 4 phases. Meiosis on the other hand has the end result of 4 haploid daughter cells that contain different genetic information from the parent cell. Part of the DNA comes from the mother's egg and part from the father's sperm. These are the main differences between the process of mitosis and the process of meiosis. Mitosis and meiosis have steps in their process that are almost exactly the same as each other with slight differences and quantities. The phases are interphase which includes the subphases of G1, S and G2. After interphase there is prophase, metaphase, anaphase and telophase. Mitosis does each of these phases once, then has a phase called cytokinesis where the cytoplasm divides and the 2 cells are separated. On the other hand in meiosis it goes through the five phases interphase 1, prophase 1, metaphase 1, anaphase 1 and telophase 1, then it goes through cytokinesis to divide the cytoplasm and create separate cells. Then in mitosis it goes through the cycle once again and has interphase 2, prophase 2, metaphase 2, anaphase 2 and telophase 2. Followed once again by cytokinesis. All phases of the cycle are the same as mitosis with the exception of metaphase 2 where instead of aligning in the center the chromosomes align in homologous pairs before being distributed to the sides by the spindles. Please note: this is just a sample. Get a custom paper from our expert writers now. Get a Custom Essay Mitosis and meiosis are similar ways of cell division, although they do so in slightly different ways with different goals for the end of the process as well. They are both important for life and reproduce cells to help organisms grow, repair and reproduce. Works Cited Alberts, B., Johnson, A., Lewis, J., Raff, M., Roberts, K., & Walter, P (2017). Molecular biology of the cell. Garland Science. Bernstein, H., & Bernstein, C. (2013). Evolutionary origin and adaptive function of meiosis. In Mechanisms of DNA recombination and.