mitosis
Meaning of mitosis: Cells rely on mitosis for both growth and the routine replacement of worn out tissue, producing two daughter cells with matching genetic material.
Definition of mitosis
Mitosis is the process by which a single cell divides to produce two new daughter cells, each receiving a complete and identical copy of the parent cell's chromosomes. This process allows the body to grow during development and to continually replace cells that wear out, are damaged, or die.
Mitosis proceeds through a series of recognized stages, during which the cell's duplicated chromosomes condense, align, and are pulled apart into two separate sets before the cell physically divides into two separate cells. The process is tightly regulated, with built in checkpoints intended to prevent division of damaged or improperly prepared cells.
When the normal controls over mitosis fail, cells can divide in an uncontrolled manner, a hallmark of cancer, and the rate of mitosis observed in a tissue sample is one factor pathologists examine when evaluating a tumor under a microscope.
Used in a sentence
Pathology noted an elevated mitotic rate within the tumor sample.
Good to know
The rate of mitosis observed in a tissue sample is one factor used when evaluating a tumor under a microscope, since a higher rate of cell division is generally associated with more aggressive tumor behavior.
Word origin
Where “mitosis” comes from
Formed from Greek mitos, meaning thread, referring to the thread like appearance of condensed chromosomes during cell division, combined with the suffix -osis, denoting a process or condition.