Question

Explain how DNA replication ensures that genetic information is conserved when a parent cell divides by mitosis.

Answer 1

DNA replication ensures that genetic information is conserved when a cell divides by mitosis through several mechanisms:

DNA replicates semiconservatively. This means that when DNA replicates, each strand of the double helix serves as a template for a new complementary strand. This results in two identical DNA double helices, each with one original strand and one newly synthesized strand.

DNA replication is highly accurate. The polymerase enzymes that replicate DNA have proofreading functions that check for and correct errors as new DNA is synthesized. This high-fidelity replication helps ensure the genetic information is copied with few mistakes.

Any replication errors that do occur are corrected. Cells have multiple DNA repair enzymes that can detect and correct errors that slipped through DNA replication and proofreading. These repair mechanisms provide an additional safeguard for genetic information.

Both daughter cells receive complete copies of genetic information. After DNA replication is finished, each daughter cell formed during mitosis will receive one of the new identical DNA double helices. This ensures that both daughter cells inherit the full complement of genetic information from the parent cell.

In summary, through semiconservative replication, high-fidelity polymerases, DNA repair enzymes and even distribution to daughter cells, DNA replication provides multiple assurances that the genetic information stored in DNA will be faithfully conserved when a parent cell divides by mitosis. These mechanisms help explain how cells maintain genomic stability during cell division.

The key takeaway is that DNA replication serves as a high-precision copying process, with many checks and balances in place, to preserve the parent cell's genetic information in the two daughter cells after mitosis.

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Step-by-step explanation:

Answer 2

DNA replication is a process that ensures that genetic information is conserved when a parent cell divides by mitosis. During mitosis, a parent cell divides into two identical daughter cells, each containing a complete set of genetic information.

Before mitosis can occur, the DNA in the parent cell must be replicated to create two identical copies of each chromosome. This process begins with the unwinding of the double helix structure of the DNA molecule by enzymes called helicases. This creates a replication fork, which serves as the starting point for DNA synthesis.

Next, an enzyme called DNA polymerase adds nucleotides to the growing DNA strand, following the template provided by the original DNA molecule. The nucleotides are joined together by covalent bonds, forming a new strand of DNA that is complementary to the original strand.

The DNA polymerase can only add nucleotides in one direction, so the two strands of DNA are replicated in different ways. One strand, called the leading strand, is replicated continuously in the 5' to 3' direction, while the other strand, called the lagging strand, is replicated discontinuously in short fragments called Okazaki fragments.

Once both strands of DNA have been replicated, they are separated and packaged into two new daughter cells during mitosis. Each daughter cell receives a complete set of genetic information, identical to that of the parent cell.

In this way, DNA replication ensures that genetic information is conserved when a parent cell divides by mitosis. The replication process creates two identical copies of each chromosome, which are then passed on to the daughter cells. This allows for the transmission of genetic information from one generation to the next, and ensures that the genetic information of the parent cell is preserved in the daughter cells.