Reproduction and Cell Cycle Study Guide

Vocabulary practice flashcards covering forms of reproduction, advantages and disadvantages, asexual reproduction types, and the stages of the eukaryotic cell cycle and mitosis.

Reproduction

The transfer of genetic information from one generation to the next, which allows a species to continue across generations.

Offspring

The young produced by reproduction.

Sexual Reproduction

A type of reproduction in which genetic materials from two different cells combine to produce an offspring, with each parent contributing half of the DNA.

Gametes

The sex cells involved in sexual reproduction, consisting of the female egg and the male sperm.

Egg

The female sex cell.

Sperm

The male sex cell.

Fertilization

The process that occurs when an egg and a sperm join together.

Zygote

The new cell formed when an egg and a sperm join during fertilization.

Genetic Variation

Differences among offspring that can help some individuals resist diseases or survive changes in their environment.

Selective Breeding

A process that helps people develop plants and animals with desirable traits.

Asexual Reproduction

A type of reproduction involving one parent that does not require fertilization, resulting in offspring that are usually genetically identical to the parent and to one another.

Binary Fission

A type of asexual reproduction where a single prokaryote cell copies its DNA, elongates, and pinches its cell membrane inward to split into two genetically identical cells.

Budding

A form of asexual reproduction in which a new organism grows by mitosis and cell division on the body of its parent.

Regeneration

A type of asexual reproduction in which a new organism can grow from a piece of its parent, or an animal can regrow missing body parts.

Vegetative Propagation

A form of asexual reproduction in which a new plant grows from part of a parent plant, such as by sending out runners that form roots.

Cell Cycle

The series of events involving the growth and division of a eukaryotic cell, which includes interphase, mitosis, and cytokinesis.

Interphase

The longest phase of the cell cycle comprising stages $G_1$, $S$, and $G_2$, during which chromatin is uncoiled, DNA and centrioles replicate, and the cell grows and prepares for mitosis.

Centrioles

Structures that replicate during interphase and move to opposite poles during prophase, which are not present in plant cells.

Mitosis

The part of the eukaryotic cell cycle consisting of prophase, metaphase, anaphase, and telophase.

Prophase

The first and longest phase of mitosis, during which chromatin condenses into visible chromosomes, centrioles move to opposite poles, spindle fibers form, and the nuclear envelope breaks down.

Centromere

The structure that joins sister chromatids together and serves as the attachment site for spindle fibers.

Sister Chromatids

Duplicated copies of a chromosome that are joined together at the centromere.

Metaphase

The phase of mitosis in which spindle fibers attach to chromosomes at the centromere and chromosomes line up across the middle of the cell.

Anaphase

The phase of mitosis where centromeres split, sister chromatids separate into individual chromosomes, and spindle fibers shorten to pull them toward opposite poles.

Telophase

The phase of mitosis in which chromosomes reach opposite poles and uncoil, a new nuclear envelope forms around each set, the nucleolus becomes visible, and spindle fibers disappear.

Cytokinesis

The process occurring around the same time as telophase where the cell's cytoplasm divides, producing two identical daughter cells.

Cleavage Furrow

The inward pinch of the cell membrane that forms during cytokinesis in animal cells.

Cell Plate

A structure that forms in the middle of a plant cell during cytokinesis and develops into two new cell walls.