Chapters 12 and 13: Cellular Basis of

Reproduction and Inheritance

Cell Division
●​ Cells arise from preexisting cells
○​ Cell reproduction called cell division
●​ Two types of cell division”
○​ Mitosis: purpose for growth and repair; creates genetically identical daughter
cells
○​ Meiosis: purpose for the production of gamete or sex cells; ensures continuity of
chromosome

Bacteria Carry out Binary Fission

●​ No real nucleus– simple

Eukaryotes
●​ Large, complex, multiple chromosomes
○​ Human cells contain about 30,000-35,000 genes
■​ Organized into separate, linear chromosomes

Somatic Cells
●​ Body cells (not sex cells)
○​ Eyelash cells, skin cells, hair cells…
●​ A complete set of chromosomes is a diploid number
○​ We have 46, 2n = 46 (23 pairs inherited from each parent)
○​ Cats: 2n = 38

Sex Cells (Gametes)

●​ Half the number of chromosomes that a body cell would have
○​ Because they will participate in fertilization
●​ Haploid
○​ Half the number
○​ 23 is half of 46
 ■​ N = 23

Chromosomes
●​ A replicated chromosome contains two sister chromatids
○​ A cross
○​ Sister chromatids held together by a centromere
●​ An unreplicated chromosome does not have two sister chromatids
○​ A line with a centromere
●​ Both of these are separate concepts from diploid or haploid
○​ Diploid: pairs in the cell
○​ Haploid: do not have pairs in the cell

Cell Cycle
●​ Cells have a specific time to do everything and each general step takes different
amounts of time in various types of body cells
●​ In body cells, if the cycle is complete the cell will divide
●​ Like an “alarm clock” that tells the cell when it is time to do essential activities and when
to divide
●​ Regulated by many chemicals inside the cell
●​ Divided into several steps (phases)
○​ Interphase represents 90% or more of the cycle time in which the cell is not
dividing
■​ Different cells in the same tissues are in various phases of the cell cycle
(not in sync)
○​ G1– cell increases in size and increases supply of proteins and organelles
○​ S-DNA synthesis or copying occurs
○​ G2– cell prepares for division, increases the supply of proteins necessary for
division, checks for DNA damage from previous copying during the S phase
■​ There are always mistakes in copying DNA, enzymes work to fix these
mistakes
○​ G0– cell stops progressing through the cycle- will not divide
■​ A critical phase of cellular activity
■​ A “rest stop”-- allows the cell to stop progressing toward division or DNA
synthesis
●​ An opportunity to repair damage from DNA copying errors
■​ Usually a pause, but can be permanent in selected cells
■​ Cells can phase into and out of G0 from several other phases (an “escape
hatch”
■​ Cells are sent to G0 if they “fail” any chemical questions (too big, too
small, not fit to divide) at the restriction point
 ■​

Three Cell Cycle Checkpoints

●​ Cell cycle checkpoints are locations that allow the cell to exit the cell cycle and proceed
into G0
●​ Three major checkpoints
○​ G1 of interphase
○​ G2 interphase
○​ M phase
■​ Not interphase
■​ Division
●​ Of the three major checkpoints, two are in interphase, one is not
●​ The release of growth factor/chemical signals at each of these checkpoints allows the
cell cycle to continue
●​ The cell will ultimately divide if not halted at a checkpoint

Restriction Point
●​ Located in G1
●​ Used by the cell to decide if it will keep progressing toward division
●​ Cell asks itself a myriad of chemical questions to determine if it is ready to proceed and
has everything in order
●​ 3 checkpoints, but there is only one restriction point
Cell Cycle Cont.
●​ Cells in the same tissue aren’t synchronized
●​ Hair divides constantly
●​ Nerve tissue never divides in adults; brain and spinal cord nerve cells are in permanent
G0
○​ This why brain damage occurs when nerve and spinal cord cells are injured in
accidents or strokes
●​ Adult liver tissues don’t divide except to repair
○​ Won’t heal from alcohol or drug damage because the cells are still there, not
gone

Cyclins
●​ Special chemicals that make the cell cycle go around
●​ Many different types and over 11 different ones in humans
●​ Treatment of cancers is dependent on knowledge of CDKs, and the cell cycle

Cell Cycle cont.

●​ How does a cell progress through the cell cycle?
○​ Many biochemicals stimulate the transition, including Kinase
■​ Kinase: an enzyme that catalyzes the transfer of a phosphate group from
ATP to another molecule
○​ CDK and MPF work together to
■​ CDK: cyclin-dependent kinase
■​ MPF: co-chemical that is attached to Cdk
○​ These chemicals stimulate the transition to cell divisions
■​ When they are high, the cell will divide
■​ Cyclin and CDK levels are altered in cancer cells and can be used as
treatment targets
 ○​

CDK 4 and 6 in development of anti-cancer drugs

●​ Cyclin-dependent kinases 4 and 6 are important in promoting the transition from G1 to S
phase during normal cell cycles
●​ Because of this,

Mitosis: Somatic (Body Cell) Division

●​ Two steps
○​ Mitosis-nuclear division
○​ Cytokinesis-cytoplasmic division
●​ Result if diploid daughter cells with identical chromosomes
●​ Cells always remain diploid during

Mitosis
●​ Somatic cells in humans have 46 chromosomes
 ●​ At the end of mitosis, they will be diploid because they will have all 46 chromosomes
●​ Interphase (G1, S, G2): not part of division
○​ The cell does other work
●​ Prophase (division beginning): mi

●​

Cytokinesis: Cytoplasm Division

●​ Differs in plants and animals
○​ In animals, a ring of microfilaments contracts around the periphery of the cell,
and processes from outside to inside
○​ Forms cleaves
○​ Different in plants
■​ It goes the opposite direction: inside to out
■​ Because the cell wall is already formed

Mitosis: The Summary

●​ The purpose is to provide genetically identical diploid daughter cells to be used in growth
and repair
●​ These daughter cells are capable of performing every task that the mother cell can do
●​ They must have the full complement of genetic information
●​ …
Rule
●​ We are going to integrate the stages of the cell cycle with mitosis (M phase) and ask
how many chromosomes you have and if they are replicated or unreplicated
●​ Rule: always start at prophase!
○​ Because the chromosomes are diploid and replicated

Problem Example
●​ A cell is 2n = 16. If this cell is in G1 after mitosis
○​ 16 total chromosomes in the cell
○​ The chromosomes are unreplicated
■​ At G1 you have not been through the S phase yet, thus chromosomes are
still unreplicated
○​ The cell is diploid (body cell division)
●​ A cell is 2n = 32. At G2 after mitosis
○​ There are 32 chromosomes
○​ They are replicated
■​ They have been through the S phase
●​ A cell is 2n = 64
○​ How many chromosomes does it have at G1 after mitosis?
■​ 64 chromosomes
○​ They are unreplicated
●​ 2n = 32 means:
○​ There are 32 total chromosomes (not 32 pairs = would be 64 chromosomes)
●​ Draw the phases of the cell cycle on a notecard

Normal Cells
●​ In normal mitotic mammal cells, division only occurs 20-50 times before cell death
●​ Telomeres are the “cell clocks” that govern cell longevity. They are found at the tips of
eukaryotic chromosomes
●​ Telomeres shorten with each division; after about fifty times they reach a critical length
and a division cessation signal is given
○​ Related to aging

Factors Affecting Cell Division

●​ Control of cell division important for the proper growth, development, and repair of
organisms
○​ Growth factors: regulate cell division; there are many
 ○​ Anchorage dependence: most plant and animal cells will not divide unless in
contact with a solid surface of substrate tissue
■​ Cells will “know” they’re not in the right area and commit suicide to keep
regularity
○​ Density dependence: division will usually stop if cells are touching another cell.
There are exceptions, such as during embryonic development
■​ If there are holes in the skin from injury, cells will divide to replace the
cells missing because they notice their density is off

Cancer
●​ Properties of cancer cells:
○​ High rate of growth
○​ Not properly regulated by growth factor feedback
○​ Lack density-dependence
■​ Form over each other and create tumors
○​ Larger nuclei and smaller amount of cytoplasm
○​ Loss of special features
○​ Ability to metastasize
■​ Travel by blood
○​ They are immortal = do not die
○​ It is related to malfunction in any area in thousands of cell signaling pathways.
Most ultimately affect the cell cycle
○​ We don’t fully understand many of the pathways
○​ Those that we do understand we can develop treatments for

P53
●​ Many tumor suppressor genes make proteins that suppress tumor formation in your cells
on a normal basis
●​ A master tumor suppressor gene in your cells is P53. We have 2 copies from each
parent
●​ …

P53: The normal function

●​ P53 will activate for DNA or other critical damage
●​ Produces a protein that halts the cell cycle
●​ If the damage is unable to be repaired, apoptosis or programmed cell death will be
initiated
Cancer cells lose the function of P53
●​ Over 50% of tumors that are malignant, P53 is inactivated
●​ For cancer to develop, there is usually a multistep process, it is just not only P53
inactivation; many mutations must occur
●​ EX: ovarian cancer has 30 different subtypes
●​ Each involved different genes and signaling pathways, but the result is P53 inactivation
●​ The differences in pathways lead to different treatment success rates

One Colon Cancer Pathway Illustrated

●​ Depicts overgrowth of intestinal lining

●​ K-ras gets mutated and the density-dependency chain still doesn’t recognize the mass
as cancer
●​ Adenoma raises the risk of carcinoma significantly

Difference b/t benign vs. malignant

●​ Benign tumors do not travel or come back
●​ Malignant do

Cancer cells and telomerase

●​ Telomerase keeps telomeres lengthened
●​ Cells keep dividing; cells with short telomeres should decrease the manufacturing of this
enzyme
Treatments
●​ Common treatments
○​ Radiation
■​ Disrupts normal processes of cell division; cancer cells are more
susceptible
○​ Chemotherapy
■​ Disrupt cell division; multiple cycles are done because must get cells in
the M phase to be effective
■​ It kills your white blood cells
○​ Newer immunotherapy is in the early stage of use
■​ It works for some, but not for all
■​ Take your white blood cells and train them to attack proteins

Cell Death
●​ Cells die in two ways
○​ Necrosis: from damage, poisons, starvation, hypoxia, ATP depletion
○​ Apoptosis: usually due to DNA damage or failed cell signals, sometimes in
hypoxia
■​ Genetically programmed cell death; cells commit suicide bc of malfunction
■​ P53 and many other genes involved; often normal in developmental
pathways
●​ EX: peeling skin from a sunburn

Meiosis
●​ Process of taking a precursor cell that is diploid and turning it into a haploid gamete or
sex cell
●​ The purpose is to create sex cells which will be used in fertilization
●​ Meiosis is essential to the maintenance of chromosome numbers in species
●​ Body cells have a single cell cycle, meiosis has two cell cycles
●​ If a cell is 2n = 46, there are a total of 46 chromosomes or 23 pairs
○​ The pairs are not “living together paired up” all the time
○​ The pairs are called to find each other during the process of Meiosis 1 and the
chromosome of each pair separates into different daughter cells
○​ So, by the end of Meiosis 2, there are no more pairs
○​ This pairing is unique to Meiosis 1

Meiosis CH 13
●​ Chromosomes of a pair are homologous
 ●​ Each homologous pair:
○​ Share the shape, and genetic loci (locations of genes); carry genes controlling
the same traits
○​ Each homolog is inherited from separate parents;
○​ In humans, 22 pairs are autosomes, remaining pair are sex chromosomes:
females are XX and males are XY
○​ X and Y are not homologous
■​ X is huge, Y is tiny

Meiosis: Overview
●​ Meiosis reduces chromosome number from diploid to haploid
○​ It occurs only in diploid cells destined to become gametes
○​ Preceded by single duplication of chromosomes before Meiosis 1
○​ Results in four haploid daughter cells
○​ Two consecutive cell cycles:
■​ Meiosis 1–
■​ Meiosis 2–

○​
 ○​

Meiosis Part 2

●​
●​ No more pairs after telophase I
 ●​

Summary of Meiosis
●​ All unique events in meiosis occur in Meiosis I
●​ Crossing over and synapsis during Prophase I
●​ Separation of homologous pairs begins during anaphase I: but we are going to say the
cell becomes haploid in Telophase I
●​ Meiosis II virtual identically to mitosis in the process
○​ Except starting cells are haploid
●​ No pairs together so haploid number of chromosomes

Examples
●​ Cells only process through meiosis I and II once. Why?
○​ Because
●​ Remember to start at Prophase 1 and go from there
●​ A cell is 2n = 38 (domesticated cat cell)
○​ If you stop the cell at G1 after Meiosis I and look

○​
○​ How many chromosomes do you have?
 ■​ 38 chromosomes
○​ Are they replicated or unreplicated?
■​ Replicated
●​ A cell is 2n = 18. If you stop the cell at G1 after meiosis II

○​
○​ How many chromosomes?
■​ 9 per cell
○​ Are they replicated or unreplicated?
■​ 9 unreplicated chromosomes

Independent Assortment
●​ The way that one pair is oriented on the metaphase plate during meiosis I is
independent of the orientation of any other pair
●​ The results are different combos of genes in different gametes
Comparison of Meiosis and Mitosis

●​

RealizeIT: Mitosis, Meiosis, and Cell

Cycle
●​ A cell that is 2n = 56 has completed the mitosis S phase. How many chromosomes does
it have?
■​ 56
○​ Are the chromosomes replicated or unreplicated?
■​ Replicated (replication occurs in S phase)
●​ Sister chromatids separate during
○​ Anaphase
●​ You can replicate a chromosome composed of two sister chromatids
○​ False
●​ If a cell is 2n = 12 and the cell is in Metaphase 2 of Meiosis how many tetrads are
present?
■​ Tetrad: pair of homologous chromosomes, each consisting of two sister
chromatids, forming a structure with four chromatids in total during
Prophase 1 of Meiosis
■​ Metaphase 2 of Meiosis: homologous chromosomes separated in
Anaphase 1, meaning there are no longer any tetrads present
 ●​ At this stage, each chromosome only has 2 sister chromatids, not
4
○​ Are the chromosomes replictated or unreplicated?
■​ Replicated
●​ If 2n = 82 and the cell is at the end of Telophase after Meiosis 1, what is the number of
chromosomes per cell?
■​ 41
○​ Are the chromosomes replicated or unreplicated?
■​ Replicated

Meiosis
●​ Important because the wrong number of chromosomes in us leads to conditions like
Downs’ Syndrome in humans, in other animals it often causes major issues and usually
results in death

Purpose of Meiosis
●​ Occurs in a diploid precursor cell and produces haploid gamete cells (sex cells) that
have undergone recombination
○​ Recombination: occurs when chromosome pairs exchange genetic information
■​ Enhancers genetic diversity
○​ TLDR: special body cells get a signal and go through meiosis to become haploid
sex cells
●​ Meiosis 1 & 2
○​ Meiosis 1: ensures the chromosome pairs are separated into different cells so
that each daughter cell is haploid
○​ Meiosis 2: separates the sister chromatids of each of the chromosomes

Meiosis Involves Separations of Pairs

●​ Homologous pairs: chromosomes of the same number, such as two number-ones
○​ Same size, shape, and centromere location
●​ So during prophase through early anaphase of Meisosi 1, the homologous
chromosomes are paired up
○​ In humans, during this process, there are 23 pairs

Stages of Meiosis: Meiosis I

●​ Prophase 1
○​ Synapsis: the tight pairing of the homologous chromosomes
○​ During synapsis, the genes on the chromatids of the homologous chromosomes
are aligned precisely with each other
○​ Crossing over: exchange of chromosomal segments between non-sister
homologous chromatids
 ○​ Crossing over can be observed visually after the exchange as chiasmata
(singular = chiasma)
○​ The chromosomes are in replicated form, thus contain both sister chromatids

Metaphase I
●​ Homologous chromosome pairs are arranged in the center of the cell with the
kinetochores facing opposite poles
○​ Kinetochores: protein complexes that attach chromosomes to spindle
microtubules
●​ Homologous pairs (or tetrads or bivalents) orient themselves randomly in the center
○​ EX: if two homologous members of chromosome 1 are labeled a and b, then the
chromosomes could line up a-b or b-a
○​ This is important in determining the genes carried by a gamete because each will
only receive one of the two homologous chromosomes
○​ H. pairs aren’t identical, they have slight differences in their genetic information,
causing each gamete to have a unique genetic makeup

Anaphase I
●​ Microtubules pull the linked chromosomes apart
○​ Pairs are pulled apart
●​ Sister chromatids remain tightly bound together at the centromere
●​ Chiasmata are broken as the microtubules attached to the fused kinetochores pull the
homologous chromosomes apart

Important Topics
●​ Chromosomes: replicated and unreplicated
●​ Centromere
○​ The Center holds the sister chromatids together
●​ Centrosome
●​ Sister chromatids
●​ Tetrad
○​ In a cocoon together during Prophase I
●​ Homologous pair (homologs)
●​ Diploid
○​ Pairs in the cell
●​ Haploid
○​ No pairs
●​ Spindle fibers
●​ Kinetochore
○​
●​ Cell cycle, M, S, G1, G2, G0 (all locations and functions)
 ○​
○​ Anaphase: we pull sister chromatids apart
○​ Telophase: we divide the cytoplasm
○​
●​ MAD
○​ In yeast
●​ What is a kinase?
●​ What are cyclins?
●​ What is the restriction point and where is it located?
○​ In G1
●​ Cell cycle of a body cell
○​ meiosis
●​ Cell cycle of a gamete cell
○​ Meiosis
○​ Results in haploids
●​ Gamete
○​ Sex cell
●​ Problems: given any 2n = number: how many chromosomes of each type are at each
stage of the cell cycle
○​ 2n = 12; 12 total chromosomes
●​ Mitosis, Prophase, Metaphase, Anaphase, Telophase, and Cytokinesis
●​ Cytokinesis is animals; cell forms cleavage furrow (from outside in)
●​ In plants, cell forms cell plate (from inside out)
●​ 2n
●​ N
○​ N = 11; 11 chromosomes from each parent gamete
●​ Cancer cells and P53; density independent
○​ Normal cells are density dependent
■​ Live 20-50 divisions before they die
 ■​ The cells know when they are touching eachothers membranes
○​ Cancer cells are density independent, so they form ontop of each other and form
tumors
○​ P53: don’t die by regular means, must run out of blood or oxygen
●​ Meiosis: all stages how many chromosomes, are they replicated unreplicated, functions
of each stage
○​ Part 1
■​ Prophase 1 has
○​ Part 2
●​ Synapsis
○​ Occurs in Meiosis Prophase 1
○​ Pairs find eachother
●​ Chiasmata
○​ Occurs in Meiosis Prophase 1
○​ Crossing over, flipping genes
●​ Independent assortment
○​ Alternate alignment of pairs during Meiosis 1
○​ Dominant genes can flip
●​ Cell cycle of meiosis: after meiosis 1 there is only a short interphase that consists only of
G1. there is no S and no G2 after Meiosis 1. The reason is that you do not want to
rpelicate a chromosome that is already replicated. Replicated chromosomes have 2
sister chromatids and should never have 4 sister chromatids
○​
●​ After meiosis 2, there is an interphase that consists of G1, S and G2 and the G0 out of
G2
●​ Know the cell cycle work sheet diagrams given out in lecture
●​ What are autosomes?

○​
○​ 1 - 22 are autosomes
 ○​ Not sex cells
○​ Traits on the X chromosome
○​ The bigger the chromosome/autosomes are, the more genes there are on them
●​ Telomeres
○​ The tips of the chromosomes
○​ Short = aging traits
○​ Longer = delayed aging traits
●​ Apoptosis = programmed cell death
○​ EX: a granola bar can slice throat cells off your throat, they’ll fall in your stomach
and will kill themselves bc they realize they’re in the wrong area
○​ EX: skin peeling when sunburnt because the cells kill themselves to avoid cells
becoming cancerous
●​ CDK 4 and CDK 6: anti-cancer drugs developed bc understand these in cell cycle
○​ Breast cancer– negative