Final answer:
Colchicine inhibits mitosis by binding to tubulin and disrupting microtubule function, which is necessary for chromosome separation and can lead to decreased inflammation and white blood cell count.
Step-by-step explanation:
An example of a developmental process that would be inhibited by colchicine is mitosis. Colchicine is a chemical compound that can disrupt cell division by binding to tubulin, which is a subunit of microtubules essential for the formation of the mitotic spindle. Since the mitotic spindle is necessary for the separation of chromosomes during mitosis, the presence of colchicine effectively inhibits this process.
This disruption can lead to a decreased white blood cell count, which is one reason colchicine is used to treat conditions like gout by decreasing inflammation. However, by inhibiting mitosis, colchicine can also cause undesirable side effects such as low white blood cell counts.