Gametes & Fertilization

● Fertilization is the fusion of the nuclei from a male gamete (sperm cell) and a
female gamete (egg cell)
● It occurs in the oviducts
● Gametes have adaptations to increase the chances of fertilization and
successful development of an embryo
Adaptations of Gametes Explained

Comparison of Male & Female Gametes

Stages of Birth

● Muscles in the uterus wall contract

● Amniotic sac breaks
● Cervix dilates (gets wider)
● Baby passes out through the vagina
● Umbilical cord is tied and cut
● Afterbirth is delivered
Antenatal Care

● Antenatal (before birth), care is the name given to the care and advice given to
expectant mothers along with checks on fetal growth and development
● Whilst pregnant, expectant mothers are given advice on:
○ diet including the need to take folic acid to prevent developmental
issues with the fetus and the importance of a balanced diet
○ exercise to stay fit
○ health precautions such as avoiding infections, tobacco, alcohol and
other drugs

Breastfeeding

● During pregnancy the mammary glands enlarge and become prepared to

secrete milk
● Shortly after birth, the mother will be stimulated to release milk due to the
sucking action of the baby at the breast
 ● Some mothers struggle to breastfeed successfully and so may feed the baby
using formula milk in a bottle

Secondary Sexual Characteristics

● Primary sexual characteristics are present during development in the uterus

and are the differences in reproductive organs etc between males and females
● Secondary sexual characteristics are the changes that occur during puberty as
children become adolescents
 ● They are controlled by the release of hormones - estrogen in girls and
testosterone in boys

Some changes occur to both boys and girls,

including growth of sexual organs and growth of body hair

● Emotional changes also occur due to the increased levels of hormones in the
body
● These include more interest in sex and increased mood swings
The Menstrual Cycle

● Starts in early adolescence in girls (around age 12) and is controlled by

hormones
● The average menstrual cycle is 28 days long
● Ovulation (the release of an egg) occurs about halfway through the cycle (day
14) and the egg then travels down the oviduct to the uterus
● Failure to fertilize the egg causes menstruation (commonly called a period) to
occur - this is caused by the breakdown of the thickened lining of the uterus
● Menstruation lasts around 5 - 7 days and signals the beginning of the next
cycle
● After menstruation finishes, the lining of the uterus starts to thicken again in
preparation for possible implantation in the next cycle

Changes in the lining of the uterus during the menstrual cycle

Hormonal Control of the Menstrual Cycle

● The menstrual cycle is controlled by hormones released from the ovary and
the pituitary gland in the brain
● Estrogen levels rise from day 1 to peak just before day 14
● This causes the uterine wall to start thickening and the egg to mature
● The peak in estrogen occurs just before the egg is released
● Progesterone stays low from day 1 – 14 and starts to rise once ovulation has
occurred
● The increasing levels cause the uterine lining to thicken further; a fall in
progesterone levels causes the uterine lining to break down (menstruation /
‘period’)

Changes in the levels of the pituitary hormones FSH and LH in the blood
during the menstrual cycle
● FSH (follicle-stimulating hormone) is released by the pituitary gland and
causes an egg to start maturing in the ovary
● It also stimulates the ovaries to start releasing estrogen
● The pituitary gland is stimulated to release luteinising hormone (LH) when
estrogen levels have reached their peak
● LH causes ovulation to occur and also stimulates the ovary to produce
progesterone
● The roles of estrogen and progesterone

Changes in the levels of estrogen and progesterone in the blood during the
menstrual cycle
 ● Estrogen levels rise from day 1 to peak just before day 14
● This causes the uterine wall to start thickening and the egg to mature
● The peak in estrogen occurs just before the egg is released
● Progesterone stays low from day 1 – 14 and starts to rise once ovulation has
occurred
● The increasing levels cause the uterine lining to thicken further; a fall in
progesterone levels causes the uterine lining to break down (menstruation /
‘period’)

Interaction between all four of the menstrual cycle hormones

● The pituitary gland produces FSH which stimulates the development of a

follicle in the ovary
● An egg develops inside the follicle and the follicle produces the hormone
estrogen
● Estrogen causes growth and repair of the lining of the uterus wall and inhibits
production of FSH
● When estrogen rises to a high enough level it stimulates the release of LH
from the pituitary gland which causes ovulation (usually around day 14 of the
cycle)
● The follicle becomes the corpus luteum and starts producing progesterone
● Progesterone maintains the uterus lining (the thickness of the uterus wall)
● If the ovum is not fertilized, the corpus luteum breaks down and progesterone
levels drop
● This causes menstruation, where the uterus lining breaks down and is
removed through the vagina - commonly known as having a period
● If pregnancy does occur the corpus luteum continues to produce
progesterone, preventing the uterus lining from breaking down and aborting
the pregnancy
● It does this until the placenta has developed, at which point it starts secreting
progesterone and continues to do so throughout the pregnancy
Hormonal Control of the Human Menstrual Cycle

● After puberty in women, the ovaries and uterus go through a series of changes
that recur approximately every 28 days
● This process is known as the menstrual cycle
○ During the menstrual cycle the lining of the uterus builds up and
ovulation occurs
● The menstrual cycle is coordinated by 4 glycoprotein hormones that are
released by the anterior pituitary gland and the ovaries
● Pituitary gland hormones:
○ Follicle-stimulating hormone (FSH) stimulates egg maturation
○ Luteinising hormone (LH) stimulates ovulation
● Ovarian hormones:
○ During the monthly ovarian cycle, follicles develop in the ovary and
secrete the steroid hormone estrogen
 ○ Estrogen causes growth and repair of the lining of the uterus wall
○ After the female gamete (ovum) is released from the ovary during
ovulation, the remains of the follicle secrete the steroid hormone
progesterone
○ Progesterone maintains the uterus lining

The menstrual cycle

● The menstrual cycle begins with the onset of menstruation, which usually
lasts 4-8 days
○ The lining of the uterus is lost
○ Commonly known as having a period
● During menstruation, the anterior pituitary gland secretes FSH and LH,
increasing the concentrations of these hormones slightly
● The FSH stimulates the development of a follicle
● FSH and LH also stimulate the secretion of estrogen from the cells
surrounding the follicle
● The estrogen stimulates the endometrium (lining of the uterus) to grow,
thicken and develop many blood capillaries
○ This is in preparation for the implanting of an embryo
● The presence of estrogen in the blood has a negative feedback effect on the
production of FSH and LH, causing the concentrations of these two hormones
to decrease
● However when the concentration of estrogen continues to increase and
reaches its peak, it stimulates a surge in the secretion of FSH and LH
● The surge of LH causes the follicle to burst and shed its gamete into the
oviduct - ovulation
● The follicle then collapses to form the corpus luteum (yellow body)
● The corpus luteum secretes progesterone and some estrogen, which together
maintain the endometrium (this ensures it is ready to receive the embryo if
fertilization occurs)
● The progesterone also inhibits the anterior pituitary gland from secreting FSH
so no more follicles develop
● If the egg is not fertilized, the corpus luteum breaks down and estrogen and
progesterone levels drop
● As the concentrations of estrogen and progesterone decrease, the
endometrium is no longer maintained and menstruation begins again
● The decrease in progesterone concentration also means it no longer inhibits
the anterior pituitary gland from secreting FSH
● FSH is secreted once again, stimulating the development of a new follicle
 ● If fertilization does occur the corpus luteum continues to produce
progesterone, preventing the uterus lining from breaking down (breakdown of
the lining would prevent a pregnancy)
● Once the placenta has developed, it starts secreting progesterone and
continues to do so throughout the pregnancy to maintain the lining

Remember that hormones travel around the body in the bloodstream but only have
an effect on a target organ

● You need to be able to extract and interpret data from graphs showing
hormone levels during the menstrual cycle:
 Changes in the levels of the hormones oestrogen and progesterone in the blood
during the menstrual cycle

Birth Control
 ● There are many different methods of birth control
● Contraceptive methods aim to prevent fertilisation after sexual intercourse has
taken place
● Anti-implantation methods are those which prevent the embryo from
implanting into the lining of the uterus after fertilisation has occurred –
examples include the morning-after pill and the use of IUDs (intra-uterine
devices)
● Some forms of birth control, including the birth control pill and the
morning-after pill, use hormones to prevent pregnancy

Birth control using hormones – the birth control pill

● The birth control pill is only used by females as it contains steroid hormones
that suppress ovulation
● Most forms of the birth control pill contain progesterone and estrogen,
although some contain progesterone only
● Progesterone and estrogen suppress the secretion of FSH and LH from the
anterior pituitary gland
● Taking the pill daily, starting at the end of menstruation, keeps progesterone
and estrogen concentrations high
● This stops FSH and LH from reaching the concentrations required to stimulate
ovulation

Birth control using hormones – the morning-after pill

● The morning-pill is also only used by females and works if taken up to 72

hours after sexual intercourse has taken place
● The pill contains a synthetic progesterone-like hormone
● In most cases, this prevents pregnancy by stopping the embryo implanting
into the uterus
● In some cases (if taken early enough) it can also reduce the chance of a sperm
reaching and fertilizing an egg

Chromosome Structure
● Chromosomes are made of one very long, condensed DNA molecule
associated with proteins (in eukaryotic cells)
○ The main proteins present are the large positively charged globular
proteins called histones, their role is to organize and condense the DNA
tightly so that it fits into the nucleus
○ The other proteins are enzymes used in copying and repairing the DNA
● The tightly coiled combination of DNA and proteins is called chromatin – this
is what chromatids, and therefore chromosomes, are made of

DNA is coiled around histone proteins to make chromatin

● During interphase (S phase) the DNA replicates to create two identical strands
of DNA called chromatids, joined together by a narrow region called the
centromere
● The two chromatids that make up the double structure of a chromosome are
known as ‘sister chromatids’
● It is important that the sister chromatids are identical (contain the same genes)
because this is key to cell division, as one chromatid goes into one daughter
cell and one goes into the other daughter cell during mitosis, ensuring the
daughter cells are genetically identical
● Each chromatid is made up of one very long, condensed DNA molecule, which
is made up of a series of genes
● The ends of the chromatids in chromosomes are ‘sealed’ with protective
structures called telomeres
 Simplified diagram of the structure of a chromosome

Diagram illustrating the structure of a chromosome before and after the S phase
The Importance of Mitosis
● Mitosis is the process of nuclear division by which two genetically identical
daughter nuclei are produced that are also genetically identical to the parent
nucleus
● The process of mitosis is of great biological significance and is fundamental to
many biological processes:

Growth of multicellular organisms

● The two daughter cells produced are genetically identical to one another
(clones) and have the same number of chromosomes as the parent cell
● This enables unicellular zygotes (as the zygote divides by mitosis) to grow into
multicellular organisms
● Growth may occur across the whole body of the organism or be confined to
certain regions, such as in the meristems (growing points) of plants

Replacement of cells & repair of tissues

● Damaged tissues can be repaired by mitosis followed by cell division

● As cells are constantly dying they need to be continually replaced by
genetically identical cells
● In humans, for example, cell replacement occurs particularly rapidly in the skin
and the lining of the gut
● Some animals can regenerate body parts, for example, zebrafish can
regenerate fins and axolotls regenerate legs and their tail amongst other parts

Asexual reproduction

● Asexual reproduction is the production of new individuals of a species by a

single parent organism – the offspring are genetically identical to the parent
● For unicellular organisms such as Amoeba, cell division results in the
reproduction of a genetically identical offspring
● For multicellular organisms (as seen with many plant species) new individuals
grow from the parent organism (by cell division) and then detach (‘bud off’)
from the parent in different ways. Some examples of these are budding in
Hydra and yeast and runners from strawberries
Nucleotide Structure
● Nucleic acids such as DNA (deoxyribonucleic acid) and RNA (ribonucleic acid)
are macromolecules (giant molecules)
● Like proteins (polypeptides) and carbohydrates (polysaccharides), these
nucleic acids are polymers (‘poly’ meaning ‘many’)
● This means they are made up of many similar, smaller molecules (known as
subunits or monomers) joined into a long chain
● The subunits that make up DNA and RNA are known as nucleotides
● Therefore DNA and RNA can also be known as polynucleotides

Nucleotides

● Nucleotides are made up of three components:

○ A nitrogen-containing base (also known as a nitrogenous base)
○ A pentose sugar (containing 5 carbon atoms)
○ A phosphate group

The basic structure of a nucleotide

Nucleotide structure table

The nucleotides found in DNA and RNA
ATP

● Adenosine triphosphate (ATP) is the energy-carrying molecule that provides

the energy to drive many processes inside living cells
● ATP is another type of nucleic acid and hence it is structurally very similar to
the nucleotides that make up DNA and RNA
● It is a phosphorylated nucleotide
● Adenosine (a nucleoside) can be combined with one, two or three phosphate
groups
○ One phosphate group = adenosine monophosphate (AMP)
○ Two phosphate groups = adenosine diphosphate (ADP)
○ Three phosphate groups = adenosine triphosphate (ATP)

The structure of AMP, ADP and ATP

Purines & Pyrimidines

● The nitrogenous base molecules that are found in the nucleotides of DNA (A,
T, C, G) and RNA (A, U, C, G) occur in two structural forms: purines and
pyrimidines
● The bases adenine and guanine are purines – they have a double ring
structureThe bases cytosine, thymine and uracil are pyrimidines – they have a
single ring structure
●
 The molecular structures of purines and pyrimidines are slightly different

DNA Structure
● The nucleic acid DNA is a polynucleotide – it is made up of many nucleotides
bonded together in a long chain

A DNA nucleotide

● DNA molecules are made up of two polynucleotide strands lying side by side,
running in opposite directions – the strands are said to be antiparallel
● Each DNA polynucleotide strand is made up of alternating deoxyribose sugars
and phosphate groups bonded together to form the sugar-phosphate
backbone. These bonds are covalent bonds known as phosphodiester bonds
○ The phosphodiester bonds link the 5-carbon of one deoxyribose sugar
molecule to the phosphate group from the same nucleotide, which is
itself linked by another phosphodiester bond to the 3-carbon of the
deoxyribose sugar molecule of the next nucleotide in the strand
○ Each DNA polynucleotide strand is said to have a 3’ end and a 5’ end
(these numbers relate to which carbon on the pentose sugar could be
bonded with another nucleotide)
○ As the strands run in opposite directions (they are antiparallel), one is
known as the 5’ to 3’ strand and the other is known as the 3’ to 5’ strand
 ● The nitrogenous bases of each nucleotide project out from the backbone
towards the interior of the double-stranded DNA molecule

A single DNA polynucleotide strand showing the positioning of the ester bonds

Hydrogen bonding

● The two antiparallel DNA polynucleotide strands that make up the DNA
molecule are held together by hydrogen bonds between the nitrogenous bases
● These hydrogen bonds always occur between the same pairs of bases:
 ○ The purine adenine (A) always pairs with the pyrimidine thymine (T) –
two hydrogen bonds are formed between these bases
○ The purine guanine (G) always pairs with the pyrimidine cytosine (C) –
three hydrogen bonds are formed between these bases
○ This is known as complementary base pairing
○ These pairs are known as DNA base pairs

A section of DNA – two antiparallel DNA polynucleotide strands held together by

hydrogen bonds

Double helix

● DNA is not two-dimensional as seen in the diagram above

● DNA is described as a double helix
● This refers to the three-dimensional shape that DNA molecules form
 DNA molecules form a three-dimensional structure known as a DNA double helix

Semi-Conservative DNA Replication

● DNA replication occurs in preparation for mitosis, when a parent cell divides to
produce two genetically identical daughter cells – as each daughter cell
contains the same number of chromosomes as the parent cell, the number of
DNA molecules in the parent cell must be doubled before mitosis takes place
● DNA replication occurs during the S phase of the cell cycle (which occurs
during interphase, when a cell is not dividing)
● The hydrogen bonds between the base pairs on the two antiparallel
polynucleotide DNA strands are broken
● This ‘unzips’ or unwinds the DNA double helix to form two single
polynucleotide DNA strands
● Each of these single polynucleotide DNA strands acts as a template for the
formation of a new strand – the original strand and the new strand then join
together to form a new DNA molecule
● This method of replicating DNA is known as semi-conservative replication
because half of the original DNA molecule is kept (conserved) in each of the
two new DNA molecules
● Semi-conservative replication was shown to be the method of replication by
Meselson and Stahl in 1958. They used coli (a bacteria) and two nitrogen
isotopes, a heavy form 15N and the ‘normal’ form 14N, to demonstrate how the
density of DNA changes over generations as the 15N isotope was replaced with
the 14N isotope
 Semi-conservative replication of DNA

DNA Polymerase

● In the nucleus, there are free nucleotides to which two extra phosphates have
been added (these free nucleotides with three phosphate groups are known as
nucleoside triphosphates or ‘activated nucleotides’)
● The extra phosphates activate the nucleotides, enabling them to take part in
DNA replication
● The bases of the free nucleoside triphosphates align with their complementary
bases on each of the template DNA strands
● The enzyme DNA polymerase synthesises new DNA strands from the two
template strands
● It does this by catalysing condensation reactions between the deoxyribose
sugar and phosphate groups of adjacent nucleotides within the new strands,
creating the sugar-phosphate backbone of the new DNA strands
● DNA polymerase cleaves (breaks off) the two extra phosphates and uses the
energy released to create the phosphodiester bonds (between adjacent
nucleotides)
● Hydrogen bonds then form between the complementary base pairs of the
template and new DNA strands
 Nucleotides are bonded together by DNA polymerase to create the new
complementary DNA strands

Leading & lagging strands

● DNA polymerase can only build the new strand in one direction (5’ to 3’
direction)
● As DNA is ‘unzipped’ from the 3’ towards the 5’ end, DNA polymerase will
attach to the 3’ end of the original strand and move towards the replication
fork (the point at which the DNA molecule is splitting into two template
strands)
● This means the DNA polymerase enzyme can synthesise the leading strand
continuously
● This template strand that the DNA polymerase attaches to is known as the
leading strand
● The other template strand created during DNA replication is known as the
lagging strand
● On this strand, DNA polymerase moves away from the replication fork (from
the 5’ end to the 3’ end)
● This means the DNA polymerase enzyme can only synthesise the lagging DNA
strand in short segments (called Okazaki fragments)
● A second enzyme known as DNA ligase is needed to join these lagging strand
segments together to form a continuous complementary DNA strand
● DNA ligase does this by catalysing the formation of phosphodiester bonds
between the segments to create a continuous sugar-phosphate backbone
 The synthesis of the complementary strands occurs slightly differently on the
leading and lagging template strands of the original DNA molecule that is being
replicated

RNA Structure
● Like DNA, the nucleic acid RNA (ribonucleic acid) is a polynucleotide – it is
made up of many nucleotides linked together in a long chain
● Like DNA, RNA nucleotides contain the nitrogenous bases adenine (A),
guanine (G) and cytosine (C)
● Unlike DNA, RNA nucleotides never contain the nitrogenous base thymine (T)
– in place of this they contain the nitrogenous base uracil (U)
● Unlike DNA, RNA nucleotides contain the pentose sugar ribose (instead of
deoxyribose)

An RNA nucleotide compared with a DNA nucleotide

● Unlike DNA, RNA molecules are only made up of one polynucleotide strand
(they are single-stranded)
● Each RNA polynucleotide strand is made up of alternating ribose sugars and
phosphate groups linked together, with the nitrogenous bases of each
nucleotide projecting out sideways from the single-stranded RNA molecule
● The sugar-phosphate bonds (between different nucleotides in the same
strand) are covalent bonds known as phosphodiester bonds
○ These bonds form what is known as the sugar-phosphate backbone of
the RNA polynucleotide strand
○ The phosphodiester bonds link the 5-carbon of one ribose sugar
molecule to the phosphate group from the same nucleotide, which is
itself linked by another phosphodiester bond to the 3-carbon of the
ribose sugar molecule of the next nucleotide in the strand
● An example of an RNA molecule is messenger RNA (mRNA), which is the
transcript copy of a gene that encodes a specific polypeptide. Two other
examples are transfer RNA (tRNA) and ribosomal RNA (rRNA)
 Messenger RNA (mRNA) provides a good example of the structure of RNA

From Gene to Polypeptide

● A gene is a sequence of nucleotides that forms part of a DNA molecule (one
DNA molecule contains many genes)
● This sequence of nucleotide bases (the gene) codes for the production of a
specific polypeptide (protein)
● Protein molecules are made up of a series of amino acids bonded together
● The shape and behaviour of a protein molecule depends on the exact
sequence of these amino acids (the initial sequence of amino acids is known
as the primary structure of the protein molecule)
● The genes in DNA molecules, therefore, control protein structure (and as a
result, protein function) as they determine the exact sequence in which the
amino acids join together when proteins are synthesised in a cell

A gene is a sequence of nucleotides that codes for the production of a specific

protein molecule (polypeptide)
The Cell Cycle
● Mitosis is part of a precisely controlled process known as the cell cycle
● The cell cycle is the regulated sequence of events that occurs between one
cell division and the next
● The cell cycle has three phases:
○ interphase
○ nuclear division (mitosis)
○ cell division (cytokinesis)
● The length of the cell cycle is very variable depending on environmental
conditions, the cell type and the organism
○ For example, onion root tip cells divide once every 20 hours (roughly)
but human intestine epithelial cells divide once every 10 hours (roughly)
● The movement from one phase to another is triggered by chemical signals
called cyclins

The cell cycle. S = synthesis (of DNA); G = gap; M = mitosis

Interphase

● During Interphase the cell increases in mass and size and carries out its
normal cellular functions (eg. synthesizing proteins and replicating its DNA
ready for mitosis)
● Interphase consists of three phases:
○ G1 phase
○ S phase
○ G2 phase
● It is at some point during the G1 phase a signal is received telling the cell to
divide again
● The DNA in the nucleus replicates (resulting in each chromosome consisting
of two identical sister chromatids)
● This phase of the interphase stage of the cell cycle is called the S phase – S
stands for synthesis (of DNA)
○ The S phase is relatively short
● The gap between the previous cell division and the S phase is called the G1
phase – G stands for gap
○ Cells make the RNA, enzymes and other proteins required for growth
during the G1 phase
● Between the S phase and next cell division event the G2 phase occurs
○ During the G2 phase, the cell continues to grow and the new DNA that
has been synthesized is checked and any errors are usually repaired
○ Other preparations for cell division are made (eg. production of tubulin
protein, which is used to make microtubules for the mitotic spindle)
● Interphase = G1 + S + G2

Nuclear division (mitosis)

● Follows interphase
● Referred to as the M phase – M stands for mitosis
● Cell growth stops during the M phase

Cytokinesis

● Follows M phase
 ● Once the nucleus has divided into two genetically identical nuclei, the whole
cell divides and one nucleus moves into each cell to create two genetically
identical daughter cells
● In animal cells, cytokinesis involves constriction of the cytoplasm between the
two nuclei and in plant cells a new cell wall is formed

The Significance of Telomeres

● The ends of the chromatids in chromosomes are ‘sealed’ with protective
structures called telomeres
● They are made of non-coding DNA (DNA that does not contain genes) that is
made up of short base sequences that are repeated many times (multiple
repeat sequences)
● In telomeres, one strand is rich in the base guanine (G) and the other strand is
rich in the complementary base cytosine (C)
● The main function of telomeres is to ensure that the very ends of the DNA
molecules are included in DNA replication during mitosis (the copying enzyme
responsible for DNA replication is unable to run right to the very end of the
DNA molecule and stops a little short of the end)
● If this end part of the DNA molecule contained an important gene, that piece of
genetic information would be lost during DNA replication
● In each subsequent cell division, a little more genetic information would be
lost
● Telomeres therefore act as a ‘buffer’ region of non-essential DNA and ensure
that no important coding sections near the ends of the DNA molecules are left
out of the replication process
● This ensures no genes are lost during cell division (the loss of vital genes can
even result in cell death) and allows for continued replication of a cell
● To avoid the risk of losing genes most cells have an enzyme called telomerase
that adds additional bases at each end (the telomeres)
● Some cells (generally specialized cells) do not have telomerase to ‘top up’
their telomeres and therefore after a certain number of cell divisions the cell
dies, this has been connected with the aging process

The Significance of Stem Cells

● A stem cell is a cell that can divide (by mitosis) an unlimited number of times
● Each new cell (produced when a stem cell divides) has the potential to remain
a stem cell or to develop into a specialized cell such as a blood cell or a
muscle cell (by a process known as differentiation)
 ● This ability of stem cells to differentiate into more specialized cell types is
known as potency
● There are three types of potency:
○ Totipotency – totipotent stem cells are stem cells that can differentiate
into any cell type found in an embryo, as well as extra-embryonic cells
(the cells that make up the placenta). The zygote formed when a sperm
cell fertilizes an egg cell is totipotent, as are the embryonic cells up to
the 16-cell stage of human embryo development
○ Pluripotency – pluripotent stem cells are embryonic stem cells that can
differentiate into any cell type found in an embryo but are not able to
differentiate into extraembryonic cells (the cells that make up the
placenta)
○ Multipotency – multipotent stem cells are adult stem cells that have lost
some of the potency associated with embryonic stem cells and are no
longer pluripotent

Multipotent adult stem cells

● As tissues, organs and organ systems develop, cells become more and more
specialized
● Having differentiated and specialized to fulfill particular roles, most adult cells
gradually lose the ability to divide until, eventually, they are no longer able to
divide
● However, small numbers of stem cells (known as adult stem cells) remain to
produce new cells for the essential processes of growth, cell replacement and
tissue repair
● Although these adult stem cells can divide (by mitosis) an unlimited number of
times, they are only able to produce a limited range of cell types – they are
multipotent
● For example, the stem cells found in bone marrow are multipotent adult stem
cells – they can only differentiate into blood cells (red blood cells, monocytes,
neutrophils and lymphocytes)
● In adults, stem cells can be found throughout the body (eg. in the bone
marrow, skin, gut, heart and brain)
● Research is being carried out on stem cell therapy, which is the introduction of
adult stem cells into damaged tissue to treat diseases (eg. leukemia) and
injuries (eg. skin burns)

Mitosis: The Stages

 ● Mitosis is the process of nuclear division by which two genetically identical
daughter nuclei are produced that are also genetically identical to the parent
cell nucleus (they have the same number of chromosomes as the parent cell)
● Although mitosis is, in reality, one continuous process, it can be divided into
four main stages
● These stages are:
○ Prophase
○ Metaphase
○ Anaphase
○ Telophase
● Most organisms contain many chromosomes in the nuclei of their cells (eg.
humans have 46) but the diagrams below show mitosis of an animal cell with
only four chromosomes, for simplicity
● The different colors of the chromosomes are just to show that half are from the
female parent and half from the male parent

Prophase

● Chromosomes condense and are now visible when stained

● The chromosomes consist of two identical chromatids called sister
chromatids (each containing one DNA molecule) that are joined together at the
centromere
● The two centrosomes (replicated in the G2 phase just before prophase) move
towards opposite poles (opposite ends of the nucleus)
● Spindle fibers (protein microtubules) begin to emerge from the centrosomes
(consists of two centrioles in animal cells)
● The nuclear envelope (nuclear membrane) breaks down into small vesicles
 Prophase

Metaphase

● Centrosomes reach opposite poles

● Spindle fibres (protein microtubules) continue to extend from centrosomes
● Chromosomes line up at the equator of the spindle (also known as the
metaphase plate) so they are equidistant to the two centrosome poles
● Spindle fibres (protein microtubules) reach the chromosomes and attach to
the centromeres
● Each sister chromatid is attached to a spindle fibre originating from opposite
poles
 Metaphase

Anaphase

● The sister chromatids separate at the centromere (the centromere divides in

two)
● Spindle fibres (protein microtubules) begin to shorten
● The separated sister chromatids (now called chromosomes) are pulled to
opposite poles by the spindle fibres (protein microtubules)
 Anaphase

Telophase

● Chromosomes arrive at opposite poles and begin to decondense

● Nuclear envelopes (nuclear membranes) begin to reform around each set of
chromosomes
● The spindle fibers break down
 Telophase

Meiosis in Animal & Plant Cells

● Meiosis is a form of nuclear division that results in the production of haploid cells
from diploid cells
● It produces gametes in plants and animals that are used in sexual reproduction
● It has many similarities to mitosis however it has two divisions: meiosis I and meiosis
II
● Within each division there are the following stages: prophase, metaphase, anaphase
and telophase

Prophase I
 ● DNA condenses and becomes visible as chromosomes
● DNA replication has already occurred so each chromosome consists of two sister
chromatids joined together by a centromere
● The chromosomes are arranged side by side in homologous pairs
○ A pair of homologous chromosomes is called a bivalent
● As the homologous chromosomes are very close together the crossing over of
non-sister chromatids may occur. The point at which the crossing over occurs is
called the chiasma (chiasmata; plural)
● In this stage centrioles migrate to opposite poles and the spindle is formed
● The nuclear envelope breaks down and the nucleolus disintegrates

Metaphase I

● The bivalents line up along the equator of the spindle, with the spindle fibres
attached to the centromeres

Anaphase I

● The homologous pairs of chromosomes are separated as microtubules pull whole

chromosomes to opposite ends of the spindle
● The centromeres do not divide

Telophase I

● The chromosomes arrive at opposite poles

● Spindle fibres start to break down
● Nuclear envelopes form around the two groups of chromosomes and nucleoli reform
● Some plant cells go straight into meiosis II without reformation of the nucleus in
telophase I

Cytokinesis

● This is when the division of the cytoplasm occurs

● Cell organelles also get distributed between the two developing cells
 ● In animal cells: the cell surface membrane pinches inwards creating a cleavage
furrow in the middle of the cell which contracts, dividing the cytoplasm in half
● In plant cells, vesicles from the Golgi apparatus gather along the equator of the
spindle (the cell plate). The vesicles merge with each other to form the new cell
surface membrane and also secrete a layer of calcium pectate which becomes the
middle lamella. Layers of cellulose are laid upon the middle lamella to form the
primary and secondary walls of the cell
● The end product of cytokinesis in meiosis I: two haploid cells
○ These cells are haploid as they contain half the number of centromeres

Second division of Meiosis : Meiosis II

● There is no interphase between meiosis I and meiosis II so the DNA is not replicated
● The second division of meiosis is almost identical to the stages of mitosis
● Prophase II
○ The nuclear envelope breaks down and chromosomes condense
○ A spindle forms at a right angle to the old one
● Metaphase II
○ Chromosomes line up in a single file along the equator of the spindle
● Anaphase II
○ Centromeres divide and individual chromatids are pulled to opposite poles
○ This creates four groups of chromosomes that have half the number of
chromosomes compared to the original parent cell
● Telophase II
○ Nuclear membranes form around each group of chromosomes
● Cytokinesis
○ Cytoplasm divides as new cell surface membranes are formed creating four
haploid cells
■ The cells still contain the same number of centromeres as they did at
the start of meiosis I but they now only have half the number of
chromosomes (previously chromatids)
 The different stages of Meiosis I in an animal cell

Prophase II, Metaphase II and Anaphase II in Meiosis II of an animal cell

 Telophase II and cytokinesis in Meiosis II of an animal cell

Identifying the Stages of Meiosis

● Cells undergoing meiosis can be observed and photographed using specialised
microscopes
● The different stages of meiosis have distinctive characteristics meaning they can be
identified from photomicrographs or diagrams

Meiosis I or Meiosis II

● Homologous chromosomes pair up side by side in meiosis I only

● This means if there are pairs of chromosomes in a diagram or photomicrograph
meiosis I must be occurring
● The number of cells forming can help distinguish between meiosis I and II
 ● If there are two new cells forming it is meiosis I but if there are four new cells forming
it is meiosis II

The distinguishing features at each stage of Meiosis I

● Prophase I: Homologous pairs of chromosomes are visible

● Metaphase I: Homologous pairs are lined up side by side along the equator of
spindle
● Anaphase I: Whole chromosomes are being pulled to opposite poles with
centromeres intact
● Telophase I: There are 2 groups of condensed chromosomes around which nuclei
membranes are forming
● Cytokinesis: Cytoplasm is dividing and cell membrane is pinching inwards to form
two cells

The distinguishing features at each stage of Meiosis II

● Prophase II: Single whole chromosomes are visible

● Metaphase II: Single whole chromosomes are lined up along the equator of the
spindle in single file (at 90 degree angle to the old spindle)
● Anaphase II: Centromeres divide and chromatids are being pulled to opposite poles
● Telophase II: Nuclei are forming around the 4 groups of condensed chromosomes
● Cytokinesis: Cytoplasm is dividing and four haploid cells are forming