Follow-Up Questions

Please type out your answers to these questions. Multiple pages must be stapled together (no paper clips or unattached pages). 1. Calculate the time required for each phase of mitosis using your data. Use the total of the three areas counted. Assume that the total time for the cell cycle is 24 hours. Record the times in the last column of the table below. 1st 2nd 3rd Total # of Cells 67 54 26 5 19 171 Time in Hours 9.4 hr 7.6 hr 3.6 hr 0.7 hr 2.7 hr 24 hr

Interphase Prophase Metaphase Anaphase Telophase Totals

26 13 7 2 5

17 24 11 1 8

24 17 8 2 6

2. Which cell cycle phase requires the longest time for completion? - Interphase 3. Which mitotic phase requires the longest time for completion? - Prophase 4. What important changes are occurring in the nucleus during the longest phase of mitosis? Does this justify the amount of time spent in the phase? - In prophase, the nuclear envelopes breaks apart, and the replicated chromosomes condense to form the familiar X figures. The chromosomes then begin migrating to the middle of the cell. 5. Which mitotic phase requires the next longest time for completion? - Metaphase 6. Which mitotic phase requires the shortest time for completion? - Anaphase

7. Are there any assumptions made in using this method to estimate the timing of phases within the cell cycle? What are the most important assumptions? In the scientific method (hypothetico-deductive method), complementary hypotheses are evaluated to determine the best explanation for a natural phenomenon. The scientific researcher develops both a testable hypothesis (sometimes called an alternative hypothesis) and a complementary null hypothesis. Then the researcher collects data to evaluate both hypotheses, and if the data is sufficient, determines that one of the hypotheses is the better explanation. 8. Cancer is a disease that involves irregular accumulation of cells within the body tissues. Develop a pair of hypotheses about cancer that address the length of the phases within the cell cycle and the length of the cell cycle itself. Please list your hypotheses along with a brief (only one or two sentences) explanation explaining why you have chosen those hypotheses. -

For questions 9 through 13, use the table below as evidence to test your hypotheses from question #8. Time (in minutes) of cell cycle phases for normal and cancerous chicken stomach cells

Normal stomach cells Interphase Prophase Metaphase Anaphase Telophase Total Cells 120 60 10 3 12 205

Total hours

Cancerous stomach cells 16 15 2 1 3 37

Total Hours

14 7.0 1.2 0.4 1.4 24

10.4 9.7 1.4 0.6 1.9 24

9. Which mitotic phase for normal cells requires the longest time for completion? - Prophase

10. How do cancer cells differ from normal cells in time spent for each cell cycle phase? - Although there is almost 5 times the total number of cancer cell compared to normal cells, the times are almost the same so this tells you that the cancer cell cycle is 5 times slower as a normal cell. 11. How do cancer cells differ from normal cells in total time required for mitosis? - Cancer cells take almost the same amount of time to complete their cell cycle as a normal cell but there are 5 times less cancer cells than normal cells. Cancer cells divide and multiple surprisingly slow. 12. Given the data presented here, what conclusion can you make about your hypotheses? - If cancer cells divide and multiple five times slower than normal cells, then cancer spreads rather slowly compare to the normal cells of the body. 13. Imagine you decide you want to publish the results of your (this) research. What are some important assumptions made in this study that you might need to defend in your written work? -