Mitosis

• Asexual reproduction uses the process of mitosis to create the identical copies (clones) of the parent cell.

  
• Mitosis is part of the cell cycle, which involves:

  • cell growth, and the increase of the number of structures in the cell (mitochondria, ribosomes)
  • genetic material is copied
  • mitosis occurs leading to chromosomes separation and cell division
• Mitosis is also used for:

  • growth
  • repair to damaged tissue
  • replacement of worn-out cells
• The advantages of asexual reproduction include:

  • the population can increase rapidly when the conditions are favourable
  • only one parent is needed
  • it is more time and energy efficient as you don't need a mate
  • it is faster than sexual reproduction
• The disadvantages of asexual reproduction include:

  • it does not lead to variation in a population
  • the species may only be suited to one habitat
  • disease may affect all the individuals in a population