Carlyle Winiarski

SNC2D

Lab #2: Observing Cell Division due Friday Feb 3

Purpose:
Part A- To Observe and identify onion root tip (plant) cells and whitefish embryo (animal) cells.
Part B- To identify the stages of the cell cycle and phases of mitosis in each organism.

Materials: compound light microscope, prepared slides of onion root tip and whitefish embryos.

Observations:
Draw one cell at each stage of cell cycle (interphase, prophase, metaphase, anaphase, telophase,
cytokinesis). In total 6 diagrams, you may up to 3 cells per sheet of paper. Label your diagrams.

Analysis:

Onion root tips and whitefish embryos were used in this activity to observe cell division because

they grow fast and it's easy to see lots of mitosis occurring. Actively dividing cells look different

from cells that divide less often because during cell division, the chromosomes condense and

become visible, making the cell appear more compact and dense. During interphase, animal and

plant cells appear similar in size and shape. During mitosis, animal cells form a spindle apparatus

while plant cells form a cell plate. During cytokinesis, animal cells undergo furrowing while

plant cells form a cell wall. The difference between plant and animal cells during cytokinesis is

that animal cells undergo furrowing while plant cells form a cell wall. The most difficult phases

to distinguish between are interphase and early prophase because the chromosomes are not yet

condensed and visible. Whitefish embryo cells would not divide indefinitely because cells have a

limited number of divisions before they reach senescence and can no longer divide. Herbicides

that make plant cells divide more rapidly than normal can kill plants because the cells may not

properly differentiate and form new tissues, causing the plant to become abnormal or stop
growing. This could potentially be dangerous for humans if the herbicide is toxic. If two

daughter cells of an organism did not have identical chromosomes after division, it could result

in genetic disorders or genetic diversity, leading to different traits and abilities in the offspring. In

conclusion the purpose of this lab is to see the different stages that a cell will undergo, in both

plant and animal cells.