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What is the cell cycle?
All cells are formed by division of existing cells.
Eukaryotic cells always divide in one of two ways:

 Mitosis: division into two

daughter cells that are
genetically identical to each
other and to the parent cell.

 Meiosis: division into four

unique daughter cells with
half the chromosomes of
the parent cell.

All cells follow the same sequence of events between mitotic

divisions, and this is known as the cell cycle.

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The cell cycle

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Stages of the cell cycle

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What is mitosis?
Mitosis specifically refers to the process of nuclear division
that occurs before a cell physically divides in two.
During mitosis, the cell’s DNA is copied into each of the two
daughter cells. In multicellular organisms, mitosis provides
new cells for growth and tissue repair.

In eukaryotes, it can also

be a form of asexual
reproduction. This most
commonly occurs in
single-celled organisms,
such as yeast.

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Mitosis

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Phases of mitosis

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Cell cycle summary

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Stages of the cell cycle

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Specialized cells
In a single-celled organism, all the functions necessary for
life must be carried out in one cell. In contrast, multicellular
organisms can delegate jobs to particular groups of cells.

Cells that have adapted to a specific function are known as

specialized cells.
Specialized cells are grouped into tissues, which combine
to make organs and organ systems.

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Tissues, organs and organ systems

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Stem cells

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Rest phase
Cells often stop dividing once they are fully differentiated,
so where do they fit into the cell cycle?

Specialized cells move from

G1 into a resting phase
known as G0.

A cell may remain in G0 G0

for the rest of its lifetime,
or it may just rest in this
state temporarily.

G0 is also the phase in which stem cells wait until their

associated body cells need replacing.

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Plant structure

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Cell differentiation

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Chromosome number
A human somatic (body) cell
contains 46 chromosomes.
These consist of 23 pairs of
homologous chromosomes.

Each pair contains one

chromosome from each
parent. Other species
have different numbers of
these homologous pairs.

Sex cells, or gametes, have only one copy of each

chromosome: they are haploid. A somatic cell, containing
two of each, is called diploid.

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Haploid gametes
All somatic cells in a multicellular organism are genetically
identical because they are the result of mitosis.

They are all descended from a single cell – a zygote.

A zygote is formed when

two haploid gametes fuse.

These gametes are

genetically unique
because, unlike somatic
cells, they were formed by
a special form of cell
division called meiosis.

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Meiosis I and II
Meiosis is the process of cell division underlying sexual
reproduction. It is a two-stage process:

 Meiosis I introduces genetic

diversity by randomly dividing
a cell’s genes in two. It results
in two haploid cells.

 Meiosis II is similar to mitosis. It

splits each chromosome into its
two chromatids and places one
in each daughter cell. It results in
four haploid gametes.

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Genetic variation
Sexual reproduction creates
genetic diversity within a
population, which is vital to
a species’ survival.

Two processes during

meiosis determine the
unique genetic make-up
of the four daughter cells:

 During meiosis I, homologous pairs of chromosomes swap

parts of their genetic material. This is crossing over.

 The chromosomes from each pair are randomly allotted to

the daughter cells by independent assortment.

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Meiosis

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Meiosis: true or false?

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Variation from meiosis

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Chromosome mutations

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Glossary

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What’s the keyword?

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Mitosis and meiosis

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Multiple-choice quiz

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