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Ch. 11 key terms
meiosis/ sexual reproduction
| Term | Definition |
|---|---|
| alternation of generations | life-cycle type in which the diploid and haploid stages alternate |
| chiasmata | (singular, chiasma) the structure that forms at the crossover points after genetic material is exchanged |
| cohesion | proteins that form a complex that seals sister chromatids together at their centromeres until anaphase II of meiosis |
| crossover | exchange of genetic material between non-sister chromatids resulting in chromosomes that incorporate genes from both parents of the organism |
| fertilization | union of two haploid cells from two individual organisms |
| gametophyte | a multicellular haploid life-cycle stage that produces gametes |
| germ cells | specialized cell line that produces gametes, such as eggs or sperm |
| life cycle | the sequence of events in the development of an organism and the production of cells that produce offspring |
| meiosis | a nuclear division process that results in four haploid cells |
| meiosis I | first round of meiotic cell division; referred to as reduction division because the ploidy level is reduced from diploid to haploid |
| meiosis II | second round of meiotic cell division following meiosis I; sister chromatids are separated into individual chromosomes, and the result is four unique haploid cells |
| somatic cell | all the cells of a multicellular organism except the gametes or reproductive cells |
| spore | haploid cell that can produce a haploid multicellular organism or can fuse with another spore to form a diploid cell |
| sporophyte | a multicellular diploid life-cycle stage that produces haploid spores by meiosis |
| synapsis | formation of a close association between homologous chromosomes during prophase I |
| synaptonemal complex | protein lattice that forms between homologous chromosomes during prophase I, supporting crossover |
| tetrad | two duplicated homologous chromosomes (four chromatids) bound together by chiasmata during prophase I |