Essay On Meiosis

Meiosis is a type of cell division that is used for sexual reproduction. It creates the egg and the sperm cells. Meiosis begins with a parent cell (diploid), which contains two copies of each chromosome. The cell then goes through DNA copying and two cycles of cell division, also known as Meiosis I and Meiosis II. When the cell goes through this cycle, it creates four haploid, which means they contain half of the number of chromosomes of the parent cell.
Meiosis I begins with Prophase I. In Prophase I, the chromatin becomes smaller and creates chromosomes. The pair of chromosomes are known as sister chromatids that are joined together at the center which is called the centromere. Spindles also form during the phase from long proteins called microtubules on both sides of the cell. After this, crossing over occurs and breaks then reconnects DNA to make a new combination of genes. Metaphase I is when the chromosomes line up on both sides of the middle of the cell then during Anaphase I the spindle fibers pull the homologous chromosomes away from each other and toward the outside of the cell. By Telophase I, the cell goes through the process of Cytokinesis which divides the cytoplasm of the parent cell and makes two daughter cells. Each of them is a haploid cell and has only half the number of chromosomes as
Meiosis II is the mitotic division of each of the haploid cells that were formed during Meiosis I. During Prophase II, the chromosomes shorten and the form a new set of spindle fibers. Chromosomes start to move toward the center of the cell and during Metaphase II, the centromeres of the chromatids line up along the outside of the cell. The spindles pull the chromosomes apart and toward the opposites of the cell during Anaphase II. During Telophase II, the chromosomes are bounded in the nuclear membrane and cytokinesis is ready to take place. It divides the cytoplasm of the cells and creates four haploid daughter