Calling all budding biologists! Ready to put your cell knowledge to the test? The Ultimate Mitosis Stages Quiz is here to challenge you on every split second of division. Dive into our free stages of mitosis quiz to uncover how prophase, metaphase, anaphase and telophase work in harmony. Tackle engaging mitosis questions and see where you stand. Whether you're a student preparing for exams or a lifelong learner curious about the wonders of life, this cell division quiz offers instant scores and clear feedback. Start now, conquer the phases of mitosis, and boost your science smarts today! Plus, push further with our mitosis phases quiz to reinforce your skills.
What is the primary purpose of mitosis in eukaryotic cells?
To generate genetic diversity
To distribute identical sets of chromosomes to daughter cells
To synthesize proteins
To replicate organelles
Mitosis is the process by which a eukaryotic cell separates its replicated chromosomes into two identical sets, ensuring each daughter cell receives a full complement of chromosomes. It does not create genetic variation—that occurs in meiosis—nor is its main function protein synthesis or organelle replication. Accurate chromosome distribution is critical for tissue growth and repair. See Khan Academy for more details.
During which phase of mitosis do chromosomes condense and become visible under a light microscope?
Prophase
Metaphase
Anaphase
Telophase
In prophase, chromatin fibers condense into discrete chromosomes that can be observed under a light microscope. This condensation is driven by condensin complexes that help package the DNA. Following condensation, other mitotic events such as spindle formation proceed. Read more at Khan Academy.
Which structure organizes microtubules and initiates spindle formation in animal cells?
Centrosome
Kinetochore
Nucleolus
Golgi apparatus
The centrosome serves as the main microtubule-organizing center (MTOC) in animal cells, nucleating and anchoring spindle microtubules during mitosis. Each centrosome contains a pair of centrioles that assist in bipolar spindle assembly. Kinetochores are protein complexes on chromosomes, not organizers of microtubules. See Nature Education for more.
What separates sister chromatids during anaphase?
Severing of cohesin proteins by separase
Splitting of centrioles
Disassembly of nuclear envelope
Condensation of chromatin
At the onset of anaphase, the protease separase cleaves cohesin complexes holding sister chromatids together, allowing them to be pulled apart by the spindle. Cohesin removal is a key regulatory step that triggers chromosome segregation. Centriole behavior and nuclear envelope disassembly occur at other stages. More details at Khan Academy.
In which phase do sister chromatids align at the metaphase plate?
Metaphase
Prophase
Anaphase
Telophase
During metaphase, microtubules from opposite spindle poles attach to kinetochores on sister chromatids and align them along the cell’s equatorial plane, known as the metaphase plate. Proper alignment ensures accurate segregation. See Khan Academy for an illustration.
What process immediately follows telophase in cell division?
Cytokinesis
Prophase
DNA replication
S phase checkpoint
Cytokinesis is the physical division of the cytoplasm into two daughter cells and usually overlaps with telophase. It completes cell division after the chromosomes have been segregated. DNA replication occurs prior to mitosis during S phase. For more, see Khan Academy.
Which protein complex ensures that all chromosomes are properly attached to the spindle before anaphase begins?
Spindle assembly checkpoint (SAC)
Anaphase-promoting complex (APC)
Condensin complex
Cyclin D-CDK4 complex
The spindle assembly checkpoint (SAC) delays anaphase onset until all kinetochores are properly attached to spindle microtubules, preventing chromosome missegregation. The APC drives progression once the checkpoint is satisfied. Condensin compacts chromosomes, and Cyclin D-CDK4 functions in G1. See Nature Education.
How many daughter cells result from one round of mitosis followed by cytokinesis?
Two
Four
One
Eight
Mitosis followed by cytokinesis yields two genetically identical daughter cells from one parent cell. Each inherits the same chromosome number and DNA content. Meiosis, not mitosis, produces four cells. More info at Khan Academy.
What role do centrosomes play during mitosis?
They nucleate spindle microtubules
They attach chromosomes at the kinetochore
They condense chromatin
They form the contractile ring
Centrosomes function as microtubule-organizing centers that nucleate and anchor spindle fibers essential for chromosome segregation. Kinetochores attach to microtubules, condensins condense chromatin, and the contractile ring forms during cytokinesis. For more detail see Nature Education.
What is the kinetochore?
A protein complex on centromeric DNA that binds spindle fibers
A type of motor protein that moves chromosomes
A microtubule organizing center
The cell’s metaphase plate
The kinetochore is a specialized multiprotein complex assembled on centromeric DNA that mediates attachment of spindle microtubules to chromosomes. Motor proteins interact with kinetochores but are distinct from them. Centrosomes organize microtubules, and the metaphase plate is an imaginary plane. More at Khan Academy.
What happens to the nuclear envelope during prometaphase?
It fragments into vesicles
It thickens around chromosomes
It reforms around each set of chromatids
It remains intact but condenses
In prometaphase, the nuclear envelope breaks down into vesicles to allow microtubules to access chromosomes. It reassembles only during telophase. It never thickens or remains intact in mitosis. See Khan Academy.
Which motor proteins pull chromosomes toward spindle poles during anaphase?
Dyneins and kinesin-13
Myosins
Actins
Tubulins
Dynein motors move toward microtubule minus ends at spindle poles, and kinesin-13 destabilizes microtubules to help pull chromatids apart. Myosins act in cytokinesis, actin forms filaments, and tubulin is the building block of microtubules, not a motor. For more, see Nature Education.
How does cytokinesis differ between plant and animal cells?
Plants form a cell plate; animals form a contractile ring
Plants use contractile rings; animals form cell plates
Both use cell plates
Both use contractile rings
In plant cells, vesicles coalesce at the center to form a cell plate that develops into a new cell wall. Animal cells employ a contractile ring of actin and myosin to pinch the cell in two. These are distinct mechanisms adapted to cell structure. See Khan Academy.
Which checkpoint verifies DNA integrity before entry into mitosis?
G2/M checkpoint
Spindle checkpoint
G1/S checkpoint
Metaphase checkpoint
The G2/M checkpoint ensures that DNA has been fully replicated and is free of damage before the cell commits to mitosis. The spindle checkpoint (a.k.a. metaphase checkpoint) monitors chromosome attachment, and the G1/S checkpoint oversees entry into DNA synthesis. For more, see Nature Education.
What ensures that homologous chromosomes do not pair during mitosis?
Presence of sister chromatid cohesion only
Homologous recombination
Synaptonemal complex formation
Crossing over
During mitosis, cohesion is established between sister chromatids, not homologous chromosomes, preventing homolog pairing. Synaptonemal complexes and crossing over occur specifically in meiosis. Homologous recombination also takes place in meiotic prophase. See NCBI Bookshelf.
What is the primary function of polar microtubules during mitosis?
They overlap at the spindle midzone to push poles apart
They bind chromosomes at kinetochores
They sever cohesin complexes
They reorganize the nuclear envelope
Polar microtubules extend from each spindle pole and interdigitate at the midzone, where motor proteins slide them to push spindle poles apart, aiding elongation in anaphase B. They do not directly bind kinetochores or sever cohesins. For more, see Nature Education.
How does Aurora B kinase contribute to correct chromosome alignment?
By phosphorylating kinetochore substrates to detach incorrect attachments
By degrading cyclin B
By sequestering separase
By assembling the contractile ring
Aurora B kinase phosphorylates incorrect kinetochore-microtubule attachments, reducing their stability and allowing reattachment until tension is correct. It does not degrade cyclin B or sequester separase, and it has no role in contractile ring assembly. See Nature Education.
What triggers the removal of cohesin complexes from chromosome arms during prophase?
Phosphorylation by Polo-like kinase 1 (Plk1)
Dephosphorylation by Cdc25
Ubiquitination by SCF complex
Proteolysis by caspases
Plk1 phosphorylates cohesin subunits during prophase, leading to their removal from chromosome arms in the 'prophase pathway'. Cohesin at centromeres remains until anaphase. Cdc25 activates CDKs, SCF targets proteins for degradation in G1, and caspases function in apoptosis. More at NCBI PMC.
How does the spindle assembly checkpoint (SAC) inhibit the anaphase-promoting complex/cyclosome (APC/C)?
By forming the mitotic checkpoint complex that binds and inhibits APC/C
By phosphorylating cyclin B directly
By degrading securin prematurely
By stabilizing cohesin on chromosome arms
When kinetochores are unattached, the SAC assembles the mitotic checkpoint complex (MCC), which binds APC/C and prevents it from targeting securin and cyclin B for degradation. This inhibition delays anaphase onset. SAC does not phosphorylate cyclin B or degrade securin prematurely, nor does it stabilize cohesin. See Nature Education.
What is the role of the anaphase-promoting complex/cyclosome (APC/C) in mitosis?
It ubiquitinates securin and cyclin B to trigger anaphase and exit
It phosphorylates histones to condense chromosomes
It severs microtubules at the poles
It forms the spindle midzone
APC/C is an E3 ubiquitin ligase that marks securin and cyclin B for proteasomal degradation, enabling separase activation and mitotic exit. It does not phosphorylate histones or sever microtubules. For deeper insight, see Nature Education.
How is the spindle midzone formed during telophase?
Overlap of antiparallel microtubules stabilized by PRC1 and centralspindlin
Condensation of chromatin at the equator
Cleavage of cohesin on chromosome arms
Assembly of the actin network around the nucleus
During telophase, antiparallel microtubules overlap at the spindle midzone and are crosslinked by proteins like PRC1 and centralspindlin, organizing the structure required for cytokinesis. Chromatin condensation and cohesin cleavage occur earlier, and actin assembles at the cortex. See Nature Education.
What molecular event directly triggers the metaphase-to-anaphase transition?
Degradation of securin by the APC/C
Phosphorylation of Aurora A
Activation of cohesin loading
Nucleation of additional microtubules
The APC/C targets securin for ubiquitination and proteasomal degradation, releasing separase to cleave cohesin and initiate anaphase. Aurora A phosphorylation and microtubule nucleation are involved in earlier spindle events, and cohesin loading occurs during S phase. More at Khan Academy.
How is sister chromatid cohesion established during S phase?
By cohesin loading onto replicated DNA and acetylation by Eco1/Ctf7
By securin binding to separase
By microtubule capture at kinetochores
By Aurora B–mediated phosphorylation of histones
Cohesin complexes are loaded onto DNA during S phase and stabilized by Eco1/Ctf7?mediated acetylation, establishing sister chromatid cohesion. Securin binds separase in mitosis, not S phase. Microtubules and histone phosphorylation are unrelated to cohesion establishment. See NCBI PMC.
What mechanism allows kinetochores to sense tension and ensure proper biorientation?
Stretch-induced dephosphorylation by PP1 and recruitment of stable microtubule attachments
Increased cohesin loading at centromeres
Spindle pole body separation
Histone H3 methylation at pericentromeres
Under tension, kinetochores undergo conformational changes that promote PP1 recruitment and dephosphorylation of kinetochore substrates, stabilizing correct microtubule attachments. Cohesin loading and histone methylation are not direct tension sensors. See Nature Reviews Molecular Cell Biology.
How does the RanGTP gradient contribute to spindle assembly around chromosomes?
High RanGTP near chromatin releases spindle assembly factors from importins
RanGTP hydrolyzes tubulin to promote polymerization
RanGDP recruits cohesin to pericentromeric regions
RanGTP directly crosslinks microtubules
A gradient of RanGTP around chromatin liberates spindle assembly factors from importins, promoting localized microtubule nucleation and spindle formation. RanGTP does not hydrolyze tubulin or crosslink microtubules, nor does RanGDP recruit cohesin. For a detailed review see Nature Reviews Molecular Cell Biology.
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Study Outcomes
Identify Mitosis Phases -
Recognize and name each stage of mitosis, from prophase through cytokinesis, to build a solid foundation for the mitosis stages quiz.
Distinguish Cellular Events -
Analyze the key morphological changes in the nucleus, spindle, and chromosomes during each mitosis phase to answer mitosis questions accurately.
Interpret Chromosome Behavior -
Understand the alignment, separation, and movement of chromosomes to predict outcomes during metaphase, anaphase, and telophase.
Apply Knowledge in Quiz Scenarios -
Use your understanding of cell division processes to tackle diverse question formats in the mitosis phases quiz with confidence.
Assess Mastery and Reinforce Learning -
Evaluate your performance through scored feedback and targeted explanations to identify areas for review and improvement.
Cheat Sheet
Mnemonic for Stage Order -
Use the classic "PMAT" (Prophase, Metaphase, Anaphase, Telophase) or the fun phrase "Please Make Another Taco" to lock in sequence for your mitosis stages quiz. According to Khan Academy, a strong mnemonic cuts study time and boosts recall during cell division quiz questions.
Key Events in Prophase -
During prophase, chromatin condenses into visible chromosomes and the nuclear envelope begins to break down, setting the stage for spindle attachment. The centrosomes move to opposite poles, forming the mitotic spindle fibers that you'll need to identify on any mitosis phases quiz.
Chromosome Alignment in Metaphase -
Metaphase is defined by chromosomes lining up at the cell's equatorial plane; this alignment ensures equal segregation and is monitored by the spindle checkpoint (source: Nature Reviews Molecular Cell Biology). Spotting the metaphase plate under the microscope is a classic cell division quiz favorite.
Sister Chromatid Separation in Anaphase -
Anaphase begins when cohesin proteins are cleaved by the anaphase-promoting complex (APC/C), allowing motor proteins to pull sister chromatids toward opposite poles. Understanding this step, as described in Campbell Biology, is crucial for answering advanced mitosis questions about regulation and timing.
Telophase and Cytokinesis Dynamics -
In telophase, nuclear envelopes re-form around each set of chromosomes and they decondense back into chromatin, while cytokinesis physically divides the cytoplasm via a cleavage furrow (animal cells) or cell plate (plant cells). Reviewing diagrams from NCBI's cell division resources will help you ace end-of-mitosis questions.
