1. a. Interphase is the phase of the cell cycle in which a typical cell spends most of its life. During interphase, the cell copies its DNA in preparation for mitosis.
b. The third phase is anaphase. This phase only takes about 0.8 percent of the cell cycle to complete, which is the shortest time required out of all the phases. During anaphase the sister chromatids, or the two identical parts of a chromosome, are pulled apart to opposite ends of the cell by the spindle fibers.
2. Mitosis is important for three main reasons: development and growth cell replacement and asexual reproduction.
Development and growth. After meiosis has produced a gamete, and this has fused with another gamete to form an embryo, the embryo grows using mitosis. ...
In the same way, cells during development also express specific sets of genes. These patterns of gene expression cause cells to communicate with neighboring cells, resulting in coordinated development into a multicellular organism.
