ONION ROOT TIP

Page 25

Conclusion Questions
1. The cells in the root of an onion are actively dividing. How might the numbers of cells
found in this region differ from a different part of the plant?
- The region behind the root cap of an onion is the mitotic region, which is a site for
rapid growth and thus this explains why the onion’s root tip is the fastest developing
part of the plant.

2. What stage were the majority of the cells in the water treated root tips?
- Based on the cells’ appearance from the micrographs, majority of the cells are in the
interphase stage.

3. How long does a cell spend in each stage of the cell cycle? Why does the cell spend so
much of its time in a particular stage?
- Commonly, cells remain in G1 phase for about 10 hours, between 5-6 hours in S
phase, and last for 3-4 hours in the G2 phase. As a sum, interphase takes 18-20
hours to complete. On the other hand, mitosis only takes about 2 hours. Additionally,
the cell spends time the most in Interphase, this is due to the fact that the cell
requires a long time to grow, replicate its DNA, and prepare for cell division in the
later stages.

4. What happens when cell division is interrupted?

- What occurs is the stage called metaphase, in which the chromosomes travel to the
middle of the cell and align in a region called the metaphase plate.

5. What process must take place before mitosis can begin?

- What should happen is the interphase process, in which the contents of the cell are
doubled. Before the cells can divide, either by mitosis or meiosis, they have to go
through the interphase.

6. Why is mitosis important? Where does mitosis take place?

- Mitosis is important in the formation of new cells and maintaining the number of
complete sets of chromosomes in a cell. Also, mitosis’ purposes are cell
regeneration, and replacement, growth, and asexual reproduction. Mitosis takes
place within the nucleus of the cell. In the body, the mitosis takes place in the cells of
the skin and bone marrow which are sites of active mitosis, replacing skin cells and
red blood cells that only have a limited life. In plants, the mitosis takes place in
growing regions called the meristems.

7. Give an example of cells in your body that divide slowly or do not divide at all.
- Heart cells and nerve cells divide slowly and rarely. The same goes for adult liver
cells, one of the most sensitive cells in our body, only divides once a year.

8. What is cancer? How does cancer affect the rate of mitosis?

 - Cancer is characterized by the development of abnormal cells that divide
uncontrollably and have the ability to destroy normal body tissue, and begins in the
DNA synthesis phase. Cancer affects the rate of mitosis by ignoring the normal
checkpoints regulating mitosis.

9. How would a slide of cancerous cells look different from this one?
- In comparison to normal cells, cancer cells have uncontrollable cell growth resulting
in the formation of tumors. Cancer cells do not stop dividing and they have more
genetic changes than normal cells. A slide of cancerous cells would display
abnormally large and dark nuclei compared to that of normal “healthy” cell nuclei.

10. What type of cells in your body do not divide by mitosis?

- Sperm cells and egg cells do not divide by mitosis.

PACHECK PUUU
If you haven’t done so already, copy this table onto a piece of paper. You can enter data in
this table as you go along, or at the end of the activity.

Interphase Prophase Metaphase Anaphase Telophase Total

Predicted 23 hrs 0.45 hrs 0.10 hrs 0.35 hrs 0.10 hrs 24 hrs
time
in phase

Number of 45 7 2 6 2 62
cells
(Data)

Percent of 72.58% 11.29% 3.32% 9.68% 3.32% 100%

cells
(Results)

Actual 17.42 hrs 2.71 hrs 0.8 hrs 2.32 hrs 0.8 hrs
calculated
time

Seatwork – Onion Root Tip Squash

1. Find and draw a cell showing each stage of mitosis. Write also the distinguishing visible
feature of each stage of mitosis.

Prophase Metaphase Anaphase Telophase

● Chromosomes ● Mitotic spindle is ● Cohesin ● Chromosomes

condense and fully developed, proteins binding arrive at
become visible centrosomes the sister opposite poles
● Spindle fibers are at opposite chromatids and begin to
emerge from the poles of the cell together break decondense
centrosomes ● Chromosomes down ● Nuclear
● Nuclear are lined up at ● Sister envelope
envelope breaks the metaphase chromatids (now material
down plate called surrounds each
● Centrosomes ● Each sister chromosomes) set of
move toward chromatid is are pulled chromosomes
opposite poles attached to a toward opposite ● The mitotic
● Nucleolus spindle fiber poles spindle breaks
disappears originating from ● Non-kinetochore down
opposite poles spindle fibers
lengthen,
elongating the
cell