An organism grows because its cells are doing which of the following?

• A. Undergoing differentiation
• B. Engaging in apoptosis
• C. Undergoing mitosis
• D. Performing meiosis

Answer: (C)

Verified step by step guidance

1. Understand the concept of cell division: Cell division is a process by which a parent cell divides into two or more daughter cells. It is essential for growth, repair, and reproduction in organisms.
2. Differentiate between mitosis and meiosis: Mitosis is a type of cell division that results in two identical daughter cells, each with the same number of chromosomes as the parent cell. Meiosis, on the other hand, is a type of cell division that reduces the chromosome number by half, resulting in four genetically diverse daughter cells, which is crucial for sexual reproduction.
3. Recognize the role of mitosis in growth: Mitosis is responsible for growth and repair in multicellular organisms. It allows organisms to increase their cell number, thereby growing in size.
4. Understand why differentiation and apoptosis are not directly related to growth: Differentiation is the process by which cells become specialized in structure and function, while apoptosis is programmed cell death. Neither directly contributes to the increase in cell number required for growth.
5. Conclude that mitosis is the correct process for growth: Since growth involves increasing the number of cells, mitosis is the process that facilitates this by producing identical cells that contribute to the organism's size and mass.