Final answer:
The control of the cell cycle is crucial for the health of mammals, involving checkpoints that provide 'stop' and 'advance' signals to cells. Precise timing and regulation are necessary to prevent conditions like cancer, with both internal and external factors influencing the cell cycle.
Step-by-step explanation:
Importance of Cell Cycle Control in Mammals
The control of the cell cycle is crucial in ensuring the proper functioning and health of mammals. This system of regulation involves both internal and external mechanisms that direct the cells on when to move from one phase to the next, providing “stop” and “advance” signals. Checkpoints within the cell cycle act as monitors to ensure that each cell division event is successful. Cells like epithelial cells divide frequently, while others like cortical neurons may never divide after reaching maturity. This precise regulation is essential because a loss of such control can lead to diseases such as cancer, illustrating why the timing is tightly regulated both internally by checkpoints and externally by factors like growth hormones or cell crowding.
During mitosis, cells go through stages like prophase, metaphase, anaphase, and telophase, followed by cytokinesis. If these stages are not properly regulated, it can result in cells that do not perform necessary functions, which could lead to the generation of aberrant cells with potentially cancerous properties.