Despite differences between prokaryotes and eukaryotes, there are several common features in their cell division processes. Replication of the DNA must occur. Segregation of the "original" and its "replica" follow. Cytokinesis ends the cell division process. Whether the cell was eukaryotic or prokaryotic, these basic events must occur.
Cytokinesis is the process where one cell splits off from its sister cell. It usually occurs after cell division. The Cell Cycle is the sequence of growth, DNA replication, growth and cell division that all cells go through. Beginning after cytokinesis, the daughter cells are quite small and low on ATP. They acquire ATP and increase in size during the G1 phase of Interphase. Most cells are observed in Interphase, the longest part of the cell cycle. After acquiring sufficient size and ATP, the cells then undergo DNA Synthesis (replication of the original DNA molecules, making identical copies, one "new molecule" eventually destined for each new cell) which occurs during the S phase. Since the formation of new DNA is an energy draining process, the cell undergoes a second growth and energy acquisition stage, the G2 phase. The energy acquired during G2 is used in cell division (in this case mitosis).
Regulation of the cell cycle is accomplished in several ways. Some cells divide rapidly (beans, for example take 19 hours for the complete cycle; red blood cells must divide at a rate of 2.5 million per second). Others, such as nerve cells, lose their capability to divide once they reach maturity. Some cells, such as liver cells, retain but do not normally utilize their capacity for division. Liver cells will divide if part of the liver is removed. The division continues until the liver reaches its former size.
<span>Cancer cells are those which undergo a series of rapid divisions such that the daughter cells divide before they have reached "functional maturity". Environmental factors such as changes in temperature and pH, and declining nutrient levels lead to declining cell division rates. When cells stop dividing, they stop usually at a point late in the G1 phase, the R point (for restriction).</span>
