🔬 Mitosis & Meiosis
Watch a cell divide step by step — chromosome condensation, spindle assembly, chromosome alignment at the metaphase plate, separation to poles, and cytokinesis. Switch between Mitosis (2 daughter cells) and Meiosis (4 haploid cells).
Interphase
The cell prepares for division. DNA is replicated (S phase), organelles duplicate, and the cell grows. Chromosomes are decondensed and not yet visible as distinct threads.
How it works
Mitosis produces two
genetically identical diploid daughter cells. It passes through
Prophase (chromatin condenses), Prometaphase (nuclear envelope
breaks down, spindle attaches), Metaphase (chromosomes align at the
plate), Anaphase (sister chromatids pulled to poles), Telophase
(nuclear envelopes reform) and Cytokinesis (cytoplasm divides).
Meiosis has two successive
rounds (Meiosis I and II). Meiosis I is the reductive division where
homologous chromosome pairs (bivalents) separate, halving the
chromosome number. Meiosis II is similar to mitosis, separating
sister chromatids. The result is four haploid cells.