Cell division - Mitosis
Q. What do asexual reproduction, repair and growth in animals and plants all have in common?
A. All produce new cells
Q. How are accurate copies of the cells made?
A. By the process of cell division called MITOSIS
In animals, growth takes place all over the animal s body until it reaches full size. Cells in certain areas, such as the skin, still retain the ability to grow and divide.
Multicellular organisms have a huge variety of different types of cell; humans have around 200 different cell types, all of which are derived from a single fertilised egg cell. New cells produced by mitosis differentiate and become specialised. Each cell type has specific genes "switched on" or "switched off" so that it can carry out its particular function.