Cell division plays a very important role in the life cycle of a cell. Without cell division all living organisms would fail to reproduce, eventually dying out. Cell division involves two major steps: nuclear division and cytokinesis. Nuclear division is broken into two different types: mitosis and meiosis. Mitosis and meiosis are similar processes in that they both result in the separation of existing cells into new ones. They differ, however, in their specific processes …showed first 75 words of 781 total…

…showed last 75 words of 781 total…involves the exchange of one chromosomal segment with another segment from its homologue. This would result in the sister chromatids of a single homologue to no longer contain identical genetic material, instead to contain a combination of both parent cells. The final variation is the joining of the gametes. The fertilization of the egg by the sperm in fortuitous. This variation doesn?t occur in mitosis because it required the exact copy to be produced.