Eukaryotic cells have a cell cycle. This is an alternation of interphase and mitosis. In this video we will have a look at what happens during the cell cycle and at the different stages.
DNA needs to condense to form chromosomes so that it can be moved around in the cell during mitosis and meiosis. The condensation of the DNA happens by supercoiling.
Eukaryotic chromosomes are made of DNA and proteins. They are made of supercoiled DNA. Here we have a look at the different parts of a chromosome.
Eukaryotic cells divide by a process called mitosis. There are different stages of mitosis, which are explained in this video.
The mitotic index is a number between 0 and 1. It indicates the proportion of cells that are in mitosis. Tissues with a high mitotic index contain many dividing cells. This can be either in a tumor or in fast growing parts of a plant.
Binary fission is cell division in prokaryotes. It is much simpler, but the basic principle that DNA must be copied and then separated before the division of the cytoplasm, remains the same.