Mitosis vs. Meiosis: Side by Side Comparison - Free Printable

Let’s break this down step by step.

The image shows two cells side by side, each going through cell division. The left side is labeled “Mitosis” and the right side is labeled “Meiosis.” Above each cell are circles with letters showing the stages of division.

On the left (Mitosis), we see:
- Stages: P → M → A → T
- Chromosomes line up single file in the middle during Metaphase (M)
- After division, each new cell gets an exact copy of the original chromosomes

On the right (Meiosis), we see:
- Stages: P₁ → M₁ → A₁ → T₁ → P₂ → M₂ → A₂ → T₂
- In Meiosis I (first division), homologous chromosome pairs line up together
- Then in Meiosis II (second division), sister chromatids separate — like mitosis but starting with half the chromosomes
- Result: 4 cells total, each with half the number of chromosomes

Now, let’s think about what happens to the chromosomes.

In Mitosis:
- One parent cell divides once → makes 2 identical daughter cells
- Each daughter cell has the same number of chromosomes as the parent

In Meiosis:
- One parent cell divides twice → makes 4 non-identical daughter cells
- Each daughter cell has HALF the number of chromosomes as the parent

Looking at the diagram:

Left side (Mitosis):
- There are 6 chromosomes lined up in the middle (3 pairs of sister chromatids)
- So the parent cell had 6 chromosomes
- After mitosis, each daughter cell will also have 6 chromosomes

Right side (Meiosis):
- In Meiosis I, you can see 3 pairs of homologous chromosomes lining up (so 6 total chromosomes again)
- But after Meiosis I, the cell splits into two cells, each with 3 chromosomes (each still made of 2 chromatids)
- Then in Meiosis II, those split again → so final result is 4 cells, each with 3 chromosomes

Wait — let’s count carefully from the image.

In the mitosis cell (left):
- You can count 6 X-shaped structures (chromosomes) aligned vertically in the center.
→ That means the diploid number (2n) = 6

In the meiosis cell (right):
- In Metaphase I (M₁), you see 3 tetrads (pairs of homologous chromosomes). Each tetrad = 2 chromosomes (one from mom, one from dad), so 3 × 2 = 6 chromosomes total → same as mitosis parent cell.
- After Meiosis I, each cell gets 3 chromosomes (but each chromosome still has 2 chromatids).
- After Meiosis II, each of the 4 resulting cells has 3 single-chromatid chromosomes → haploid number (n) = 3

So if the question is asking for the chromosome number in the daughter cells:

For Mitosis → daughter cells have 6 chromosomes each
For Meiosis → daughter cells have 3 chromosomes each

But wait — the user didn’t actually ask a specific question! They just uploaded the image.

Hmm… maybe they want us to compare or state the outcome?

Since the title says “Mitosis vs Meiosis Comparison,” and no explicit question was asked, perhaps the expected answer is to state how many chromosomes end up in the daughter cells for each process, based on the diagram.

From the diagram:

- Mitosis starts with 6 chromosomes → ends with 2 cells, each with 6 chromosomes
- Meiosis starts with 6 chromosomes → ends with 4 cells, each with 3 chromosomes

That matches standard biology: mitosis preserves chromosome number; meiosis halves it.

Final Answer:
Mitosis produces 2 daughter cells, each with 6 chromosomes. Meiosis produces 4 daughter cells, each with 3 chromosomes.