Anaphase
–nounBiology.
the stage in mitosis or meiosis following metaphase in which the daughter chromosomes move away from each other to opposite ends of the cell.

Cell

a usually microscopic structure containing nuclear and cytoplasmic material enclosed by a semipermeable membrane and, in plants, a cell wall; the basic structural unit of all organisms.


chromosomes

nounGenetics.

any of several threadlike bodies, consisting of chromatin, that carry the genes in a linear order: the human species has 23 pairs, designated 1 to 22 in order of decreasing size and X and Y for the female and male sex chromosomes respectively.

Cytokinesis

nounCell Biology.

the division of the cell cytoplasm that usually follows mitotic or meiotic division of the nucleus.

DNA

deoxyribonucleic acid: an extremely long macromolecule that is the main component of chromosomes and is the material that transfers genetic characteristics in all life forms


Interphase

 the interval between the end of one mitotic or meiotic division and the beginning of another


Metaphase

 the stage of mitosis and meiosis in which the chromosomes become arranged in the equatorial plane of the spindle


Mitosis

a process that takes place in the nucleus of a dividing cell, involves typically a series of steps consisting of prophase, metaphase, anaphase, and telophase, and results in the formation of two new nuclei each having the same number of chromosomes as the parent nucleus


Prophase

 the initial stage of mitosis and of the mitotic division of meiosis characterized by the condensation of chromosomes consisting of two chromatids, disappearance of the nucleolus and nuclear membrane, and formation of mitotic spindle


spindle fibers

One of a network of achromatic filaments that extend inward from the poles of a dividing cell, forming a spindle-shaped figure


Telophase

 the final stage of mitosis and of the second division of meiosis in which the spindle disappears and the nuclear envelope reforms around each set of chromosomes