Final answer:
Prokaryotic cells undergo cell division through a process called binary fission, a simpler and quicker type of asexual reproduction compared to mitosis in eukaryotes, resulting in genetically identical daughter cells.
Step-by-step explanation:
Prokaryotic cells divide by the process of: b. Binary fission.
Prokaryotic cell division occurs via a simpler, quicker process called binary fission compared to the more complex division in eukaryotes, which involves mitosis and cytokinesis. In binary fission, the cell grows to a certain size, duplicates its DNA, and the cytoplasm divides, eventually pinching apart to form two genetically identical daughter cells. This method of propagation allows populations of bacteria to grow very rapidly.
Unlike eukaryotic cell division, the DNA in prokaryotic cells is not enclosed within a nucleus but is found in a region called the nucleoid, associated with proteins for packaging the DNA. Binary fission is a type of asexual reproduction producing offspring that are essentially clones of the parent cell.