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The cell cycle
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The cell cycle is the orderly path a cell travels to end up as two: it grows, makes a copy of what it carries inside, and finally splits. In eukaryotic cells, the ones that keep their DNA inside a nucleus, that path has four named stretches. In G1 the cell grows and gets ready. In S it copies its DNA. In G2 it gets set to split. And in M it hands out everything it had duplicated between the two halves, and one cell becomes two.
That progress doesn't run on its own. There are signals coming from inside the cell and others arriving from outside, and they're the ones that clear the way from one stretch to the next. If conditions aren't right, the cycle sits still right there, like a line that doesn't move until the way is opened.
In brief
The cell cycle is the ordered process by which a cell grows, duplicates its contents, and divides into two cells.
In eukaryotic cells, this process unfolds in four phases. During G1, the cell grows and prepares. In S phase it duplicates its DNA, and in G2 it gets ready to divide. Finally, in M phase, the duplicated material is distributed and the cell splits in two.
Signals from inside and outside the cell regulate the cycle's progress. If conditions are unfavorable, the cycle can stop.
Sources (2)
- National Human Genome Research InstituteCell CyclePublished
- National Center for Biotechnology InformationAn Overview of the Cell Cycle
This page explains the topic in general terms; it does not tell anyone what treatment to follow.
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