6: Mitosis and Meiosis
- Page ID
- 25117
\( \newcommand{\vecs}[1]{\overset { \scriptstyle \rightharpoonup} {\mathbf{#1}} } \) \( \newcommand{\vecd}[1]{\overset{-\!-\!\rightharpoonup}{\vphantom{a}\smash {#1}}} \)\(\newcommand{\id}{\mathrm{id}}\) \( \newcommand{\Span}{\mathrm{span}}\) \( \newcommand{\kernel}{\mathrm{null}\,}\) \( \newcommand{\range}{\mathrm{range}\,}\) \( \newcommand{\RealPart}{\mathrm{Re}}\) \( \newcommand{\ImaginaryPart}{\mathrm{Im}}\) \( \newcommand{\Argument}{\mathrm{Arg}}\) \( \newcommand{\norm}[1]{\| #1 \|}\) \( \newcommand{\inner}[2]{\langle #1, #2 \rangle}\) \( \newcommand{\Span}{\mathrm{span}}\) \(\newcommand{\id}{\mathrm{id}}\) \( \newcommand{\Span}{\mathrm{span}}\) \( \newcommand{\kernel}{\mathrm{null}\,}\) \( \newcommand{\range}{\mathrm{range}\,}\) \( \newcommand{\RealPart}{\mathrm{Re}}\) \( \newcommand{\ImaginaryPart}{\mathrm{Im}}\) \( \newcommand{\Argument}{\mathrm{Arg}}\) \( \newcommand{\norm}[1]{\| #1 \|}\) \( \newcommand{\inner}[2]{\langle #1, #2 \rangle}\) \( \newcommand{\Span}{\mathrm{span}}\)\(\newcommand{\AA}{\unicode[.8,0]{x212B}}\)
This minds-on, hands-on activity helps students to understand how mitosis and meiosis ensure that each new cell gets a complete set of genes. Activity is designed to utilize models to demonstrate the movement of chromosomes during mitosis, meiosis, and fertilization and understand how these processes result in the transmission of genes from parents to offspring.
- 6.1: Mitosis Protocol
- You probably already know that genes can influence a person's characteristics. For example, some people have genes that result in sickle cell anemia or albinism (very pale skin and hair). In this section, you will learn how genes in chromosomes influence our characteristics. Each cell in your body contains chromosomes. Each chromosome contains a long molecule of DNA. Each DNA molecule contains many genes. A gene is a segment of a DNA molecule that gives the instructions for making a protein.
- 6.2: Mitosis Teacher's Preparation Notes
- This minds-on, hands-on activity helps students to understand how mitosis ensures that each new cell gets a complete set of genes. Our instructional philosophy for this activity and our follow-up activity on meiosis and fertilization 2 is that student learning about mitosis and meiosis is most meaningful if students learn how gene - carrying chromosomes move during mitosis, meiosis, and fertilization and understand how these processes result in the transmission of genes from parents to children.
- 6.3: Meiosis Protocol
- Almost all the cells in your body were produced by mitosis. The only exceptions are the gametes which are produced by a different type of cell division called meiosis. During fertilization, the sperm and egg unite to form a single cell called the zygote which contains all the chromosomes from both the gametes. The zygote divides into two cells by mitosis. Then, these cells each divide by mitosis. This process repeats many times to produce the cells in an embryo which develops into a baby.
- 6.4: Meiosis Teacher's Preparation Notes
- Students use model chromosomes to simulate the processes of meiosis and fertilization. As they model meiosis and fertilization, students follow the alleles of three human genes from the parents' body cells through gametes to zygotes. In this way, students learn how genes are transmitted from parents to offspring. Students analyze the results of independent assortment, crossing over, and fertilization to learn how meiosis and fertilization contribute to genetic and phenotypic variation.
Contributors and Attributions
- By Drs. Ingrid Waldron, Jennifer Doherty, Scott Poethig and Lori Spindler,. Department of Biology, University of Pennsylvania, CC-BY-NC 4.0