Make two out of one! What sounds simple is actually a complicated process, because all cell components have to be duplicated and distributed among the two daughter cells.

Thus, the first step on the road to division is the duplication of the cell’s ingredients. The hereditary material has to be duplicated as well, because each of the developing daughter cells has to receive a complete replica of the “operating system” of the parent cell.

The problem of distributing the hereditary material is quite complex: The hereditary information is located on 46 DNA-threads. Shortly after replication, the duplicated threads are still attached to each other like Siamese twins. A little later, however, they are distributed to both halves of the cell, like all other components of the cell. It is an elaborate system that ensures, that each daughter cell receives one copy-- and only one copy--of each DNA-thread. Subsequently, the cell membrane constricts itself in the center, the cell divides, and two sister cells emerge.

Provided that there are sufficient nutrients, cells are immortal. Theoretically, they can continue to divide infinitely. Because of this, the body’s cell division has to be regulated strictly. Normally, the division does not commence until the cells receive a signal. Because of a number of genetic mutations, this control mechanism does not work in cancer cells.