8. Mitosis is the process by which a cell duplicates its genetic information (DNA), in order to generate two, identical cells. It is generally followed immediately by cytokinesis which divides the cytoplasm and cell membrane. This results in two identical cells with a roughly equal distribution of organelles and other cellular components. Mitosis and cytokinesis together define the mitotic (M) phase of the cell cycle, the division of the mother cell into two daughter cells, each with the genetic equivalent of the parent cell. Mitosis occurs exclusively in eukaryotic cells. In multicellular organisms, the somatic cells undergo mitosis, while germ cells — cells destined to become sperm in males or ova in females — divide by a related process called meiosis. Prokaryotic cells, which lack a nucleus, divide by a process called binary fission.
Significance
The importance of mitosis is the maintenance of the chromosomal set; each cell formed receives chromosomes that are alike in composition and equal in number to the chromosomes of the parent cell. Transcription is generally believed to cease during mitosis, but epigenetic mechanisms such as bookmarking function during this stage of the cell cycle to ensure that the "memory" of which genes were active prior to entry into mitosis are transmitted to the daughter cells.
Significance of meiosis
Meiosis facilitates stable sexual reproduction. Without the halving of ploidy, or chromosome count, fertilization would result in zygotes that have twice the number of chromosomes than the zygotes from the previous generation. Successive generations would have an exponential increase in chromosome count, resulting in an unwieldy genome that would cripple the reproductive fitness of the species. Polyploidy, the state of having three or more sets of chromosomes, also results in developmental abnormalities or lethality.[citation needed]
Most importantly, however, meiosis produces genetic variety in gametes that propagate to offspring. Recombination and independent assortment allow for a greater diversity of genotypes in the population. As a system of creating diversity, meiosis allows a species to maintain stability under environmental changes.