Question

How many daughter cells are produced from meiosis of one parent cell?

Answer 1

Meiosis is a process where a parent cell undergoes division to form four daughter haploid cells. It is known as reductional division.

Complete answer:
Meiosis involves two cell divisions that are meiosis 1 and meiosis 2.

Meiosis 1 is of 4 stages known as prophase 1, metaphase 1, anaphase 1, and telophase 1. Prophase is further divided into 5 substages known as leptotene, zygotene, pachytene, diakinesis, and diplotene. In anaphase 1, the sister chromatids are not separated but the homologous chromosomes get separated and at the end of meiosis 1, two daughter cells are obtained.

Now after meiosis 1, the cell enters the rest phase known as interphase or interkinesis after which meiosis 2 begins, it also has those same five stages as that of meiosis 1 but the prophase in meiosis 2 is a very simple process and is similar to prophase of mitosis. In anaphase two the chromatids of the daughter cells also get separated due to which four daughter cells are obtained at the end of meiosis 2.

Therefore, Four daughter cells are produced by meiosis of one parent cell.

Note: The DNA replication occurs only once in meiosis that is in the Synthesis phase of the cell cycle and the number of cell divisions is two in meiosis. An entire cell cycle of both meiosis and mitosis includes different phases that are the G1 phase, G2 phase, M phase, and S phase. The meiosis cell cycle except the M phase is also known as the interphase. M phase is the period where only cell division occurs whereas interphase is the phase where DNA replication, protein synthesis occur.