Mitosis and Meiosis

Mitosis Report - Experiment in Area 51

José Miguel Abello

9B

Bureche School

Introduction: Mitosis is a process where cells divide to create more individuals, those individuals replace old cells and regenerate some injuries. Mitosis is when one cell divides and form 2 equal cells. Cells do 2 important phases: Interphase and Mitosis. Interphase is when the cell prepares for mitosis, the cell grows in organelles and in size, also it duplicates it dna. In mitosis cells start to divide, the cell goes through many phases until there are 2 separated cells.

Objectives:

• Paint with dye the cells of a meristem so it becomes visible.

• Observe mitosis in meristems of onion roots.

Materials:

• Onion roots

• 2 beakers

• Petri Dish

• Chlorhydric Acid (HCL 10%)

• Distilled water

• Slides and Coverslips

• Dropper

• Razor Blade

• 1 Needle

• Paper towels

• Microscope

• Acetic Orcein

Methods:

• Cut 5 mm of the tip of an onion root, then place the tip on a beaker.

• Place chlorhydric acid 10% in the beaker, only 5 mm and leave it like that for 6 minutes.

• Remove the root from the beaker, with a dropper filled with distilled water rinse away the acid, repeat this 2 times more.

• Cut 2 mm of the tip of the small root, and with the needle place the tip in the microscope slide and color the tip with 0.5% acetic orcein for 2 minutes.

• Put a coverslip, and with a dropper drop some drops of distilled water on one side so the coverslip absorbs the remaining dye. With the microscope watch cells during mitosis.

Analysis and Conclusion: The tissue was like a deformed ball, with a purple wall and pink cytoplasm, the was a line similar to hair in the middle and there were some purple dots on the tissue. It wasn't so clear but I think most of them were in Metaphase or Anaphase. Evidence showing that mitosis is a continues process is that if mitosis starts only when there's a cut then all cells will had been on prophase, but most of them were in anaphase almost finishing mitosis. We needed the tissue in the roots of the onions because they are growing all the time so mitosis is more active there. Chlorhydric acid was important because it let us saw the cells without it the cells are not visible.

This is what I saw:

References:

• Carboni, G. 2010. Mitosis in the root tips of garlic and onion.

• Miller, K., Levine, J. 2016. Biology. Pg. 288. Pearson. United States.

• Ms. Melissa. 2016. Mitosis and Meiosis Class. Colombia