Meiosis The type of cell division required for sexual reproduction is meiosis.

Sexually reproducing organisms include seaweeds, fungi, plants, and animalsincluding, of course, human beings. Meiosis differs from mitosis in that cell division begins with a cell that has a full complement of chromosomes and ends with gamete cells, such as sperm and eggs that have only half the complement of chromosomes. When a sperm and egg unite during fertili ation, the cell resulting from the union, called a ygote, contains the full number of chromosomes.

Mitosis The type of cell division required for sexual reproduction is meiosis. Sexually reproducing organisms include seaweeds, fungi, plants, and animalsincluding, of course, human beings. Meiosis differs from mitosis in that cell division begins with a cell that has a full complement of chromosomes and ends with gamete cells, such as sperm and eggs, that have only half the complement of chromosomes. When a sperm and egg unite during fertili ation, the cell resulting from the union, called a ygote, contains the full number of chromosomes.

!aploid Sex cells "eggs or sperm# contain only half the number of chromosomes found in the other cells of an organism. This reduced number of chromosomes in the sex cells is $nown as the haploid number. %uring fertili ation, an egg and sperm unite to form a cell $nown as a ygote, the first cell of the offspring. The ygote contains the diploid number of chromosomes characteristic of the species.

!umans have &' pairs of chromosomes, with a diploid number of (). Scientists number these chromosome pairs according to their si ethe largest is chromosome * and the smallest is chromosome &'. +n human chromosomes, errors may occur that give rise to embryos with more or less genetic material, sometimes resulting in

developmental disabilities or health problems "see ,enetic %isorders#. +n a process called nondis-unction, paired members of chromosomes fail to separate from one another during meiosis. .ondis-unction can lead to a condition $nown as %own syndrome, in which a person inherits three copies of chromosome &*. /nother condition that may result from nondis-unction is Turner syndrome, a disorder in which a female inherits only a single 0 chromosome.

Somatic vs. ,erm 1ells When the embryo of any sexually reproducing animal is undergoing cell division, certain cells, $nown as primordial germ cells, which are produced by such division, remain in an undifferentiated state. 1ells other than primordial germ cells are $nown as vegetative cells or somatic cells2 these cells become differentiated into tissues and organs. +n invertebrates, the primordial germ cells congregate in the body cavity or in a section of the circulatory system2 in vertebrates, these cells are located in organs that ad-oin the excretory system. The tissues in which the germ cells lodge become reproductive organs $nown as gonads. These organs are embryologically derived from primitive $idneys located in the anterior, lateral part of the body2 in most mammals, they shift before birth to the posterior, ventral region of the body. The primordial germ cells remain inactive in the gonads until the animal reaches sexual maturity, when the undifferentiated cells undergo a great number of normal cell divisions or mitoses. +n the process of developing into mature reproductive cells or gametes, the germ cells undergo a special type of cell division, $nown as meiosis, which halves the number of chromosomes they carry. /t the time of sexual maturity, the somatic cells composing the gonads of higher animals begin to secrete hormones that control the appearance of the various secondary sexual characteristics

,onads When the embryo of any sexually reproducing animal is undergoing cell division, certain cells, $nown as primordial germ cells, which are produced by such division,

remain in an undifferentiated state. 1ells other than primordial germ cells are $nown as vegetative cells or somatic cells2 these cells become differentiated into tissues and organs. +n invertebrates, the primordial germ cells congregate in the body cavity or in a section of the circulatory system2 in vertebrates, these cells are located in organs that ad-oin the excretory system. The tissues in which the germ cells lodge become reproductive organs $nown as gonads. These organs are embryologically derived from primitive $idneys located in the anterior, lateral part of the body2 in most mammals, they shift before birth to the posterior, ventral region of the body. The primordial germ cells remain inactive in the gonads until the animal reaches sexual maturity, when the undifferentiated cells undergo a great number of normal cell divisions or mitoses. +n the process of developing into mature reproductive cells or gametes, the germ cells undergo a special type of cell division, $nown as meiosis, which halves the number of chromosomes they carry. /t the time of sexual maturity, the somatic cells composing the gonads of higher animals begin to secrete hormones that control the appearance of the various secondary sexual characteristics

1ell division Within all organisms, cells divide to produce new cells, each of which requires the genetic information found in %./. 3et simply splitting the %./ of a dividing cell between two new cells would lead to disasterthe two new cells would have different instructions and each subsequent generation of cells would have less and less genetic information to wor$ with. +magine how chaotic it would be to rip an architectural blueprint in two, give each half to different contractors, and tell them to construct identical buildings. 4ust as each contractor would require a full copy of the blueprint to construct a complete building, each new cell needs a complete copy of an organism5s genetic information to function properly.

6rganisms use two types of cell division to ensure that %./ is passed down from cell to cell during reproduction. Simple one7celled organisms and other organisms that

reproduce asexuallythat is, without the -oining of cells from two different organisms reproduce by a process called mitosis. %uring mitosis a cell doubles its %./ before dividing into two cells and distributing the %./ evenly to each resulting cell. 6rganisms that reproduce sexually use a different type of cell division. These organisms produce special cells called gametes, or egg and sperm. +n the cell division $nown as meiosis, the chromosomes in a gamete cell are reduced by half. %uring sexual reproduction, an egg and sperm unite to form a ygote, in which the full number of chromosomes is restored.