Mitosis and Meiosis Activity Worksheet

Pre-activity Discussion Questions

Using your background knowledge, lesson resources, and assigned reading, answer the discussion questions below:

1.What is the overall purpose of mitosis and meiosis? Meiosis produces gametes in the human body, whereas mitosis
produces daughter cells that resemble their mothers.

2.Why is it important that DNA is replicated prior to cell division? The cells make sure the DNA is replicated before
dividing so that the daughter cell receives a copy of the genome and inherits certain traits.

3.How are normal cells and cancer cells different from each other ? Cancer cells multiply quickly and do not perish.
Regular cells grow, divide, and finally pass away. We refer to this as the cell cycle.

4.Describe mistakes that can occur during the cell cycle and cause human disorders. Translocations, or the joining of two
chromosomes, are another type of mistake that may occur throughout this process. Deletion is another mistake
that happens when a chromosome is lost.

Mitosis and Meiosis Reflection Questions

Use your lesson resources, assigned reading, and models to answer the reflection questions below:

1.Summarize what happens to the chromosomes during each stage of mitosis and meiosis. (Use terms homologous
chromosomes, sister chromatids, spindle fibers, and tetrads in your description.) The prophase is the first phase of
mitosis, when the chromosomes are first assembled and arranged by the mitotic spindle. Sister chromatids on
the chromosomes in the nucleus are the product of DNA duplication that occurred during this phase of the cell.
Since the spindle has gathered all of the chromosomes during metaphase, they align toward the middle of the
cell. During anaphase, sister chromatids separate close to the centromere and go to the opposite ends of the cell.
Not to mention, the cell creates a cytokinesis structure and is almost done dividing when telophase finishes.
Every pair of chromosomes gives rise to two new nuclei.

2.How does metaphase I of meiosis differ from metaphase in mitosis? Meiosis I's metaphase is not the same as mitosis
I's because in meiosis I pairs of homologous chromosome tetrads align in the center of the cell, but in mitosis,
individual chromosomes align independently at the equator. Normally, this homologous pairing does not occur
during mitosis.
3.How does anaphase I of meiosis differ from anaphase in mitosis? During the anaphase stage of mitosis, sister
chromatids separate equally.
However, homologous chromosomes break apart in the anaphase phase of Meiosis I.
This keeps sister chromatids in their mutual equipotent condition.

4.How and why are the daughter cells of mitosis and meiosis different from one another? The crossing over causes the
daughter cells formed during meiosis to differ from those created during mitosis, which are identical.
Karyotype Abnormalities
As explained in your assigned reading, a karyotype is a display of condensed chromosomes arranged in pairs. Karyotyping can
be used to screen for defective chromosomes or abnormal numbers of chromosomes associated with certain congenital
disorders, such as Down syndrome. Karyotypes are prepared from isolated somatic cells, which are treated with a drug to
stimulate mitosis and then grown in culture for several days. Cells arrested when chromosomes are most highly condensed—
at metaphase—are stained and then viewed with a microscope equipped with a digital camera.

An image of the chromosomes is displayed on a computer monitor, and digital software is used to arrange them in pairs
according to their appearance so researchers can check for extra or missing chromosomes, or other abnormalities. Review the
normal human karyotypes for male and female, then examine the abnormal karyotypes in figures 2, 3, and 4 below.

Figure 1 – Normal Human Genome

Figure 2 – HeLa Cervical Cancer Cells

The HeLa cancer call genome is vastly different from Henrietta’s normal genome. A gene transfer from the human
papillomavirus 18 virus (HPV18) to human cervical cells created the original HeLa strain of cancer cells.

Figure 3 – Edward’s Syndrome

Edward’s syndrome occurs in one in 5,000 live births and is seen more commonly with increasing maternal age. Babies born
with Edward’s syndrome experience developmental delay and facial, limb, heart, and kidney defects. Half of all babies born
with Edwards syndrome die within the first week, and a small percentage that live last beyond the first year.

Figure 4 – Chronic Myelogenous Leukemia

In normal cells, mitosis is usually stopped if there is DNA damage. Sometimes, in the case of cancer cells, DNA damage makes
cells divide more. Certain forms of leukemia have a unique feature called a Philadelphia chromosome. The Philadelphia
chromosome is a combination of two defectives, one from pairs 9 (center) and one from pair 22 (bottom center). The defects
cause chronic myelogenous leukemia (CML). Look at the karyotype of a leukemia cell below:
Karyotype Abnormalities Reflection Questions
Refer to the karyotype examples and e-text reading to answer the questions below:

1.How is the HeLa cell karyotype in figure 2 different from a normal cell ? Because it is a tumor, it has many copies of a
chromosome. They have more than 76 chromosomes in most cases.
Normal cells, on the other hand, contain 46.

2.What mistake during meiosis caused the trisomy 18 in Edward’s syndrome? Cell division mistakes may be the source
of this. such as when a cell acquires an additional copy of chromosome 18.

3.What chromosomal mistake caused the changes seen in pairs 9 and 22 of the leukemia cell? These chromosomes, such
as the Phildephia chromosomes where numbers 9 and 22 split and alter in size, have defects caused by DNA
damage.
4.The HeLa cancer call genome is vastly different from Henrietta’s normal genome. A gene transfer from the human
papillomavirus 18 virus (HPV18) to human cervical cells created the original HeLa strain of cancer cells.
a.Describe the type of evidence scientists would need to justify this claim. The scientists would have to show how the
RNA and genomes of these cells were sequenced.

b.From this discovery, an HPV vaccination was developed. Without HeLa cells, this would not have been possible. Yet, these
cells were taken for research without Mrs. Lack’s knowledge. Evaluate the pros and cons of designating biopsy cells as “free
cells,” cells that can be used without required patient consent.
Advantages: In this case, the cells can be helpful for research.
Cons: When consent isn't gained, moral quandaries may arise.