Difference between Meiosis I and Meiosis II

Meiosis is the type of cell division that occurs only once in the life of a eukaryote. This process is essential for eukaryotic organisms as in these gametes, or sex cells are formed after genetic material is mixed or rearranged. In the process of meiosis, the number of chromosomes in the stem cell is halved and four gamete cells are produced. Meiosis produces eggs and sperm, which are used by the body for sexual reproduction. The whole process of meiosis can be mainly divided into two smaller processes, Meiosis I and Meiosis II.In meiosis I, the diploid stem cell forms haploid daughter cells and the number of chromosomes in this process is reduced by half,

Comparative chart

What is meiosis I?

It is the process of cell division in which the number of chromosomes is reduced by half and the haploid daughter cells are formed from the diploid stem cell. This process of cell division begins with one cell and ends with two cells where the number of chromosomes is also reduced by half. Compared to meiosis II, it is a more complicated and longer type of cell division. In this process of cell division, homologous chromosomes underwent separation, resulting in the formation of two gametes. Meiosis I begins with the contraction of the chromosome in the nucleus of the single diploid cell. In meiosis I, recombination or mixing of pairs of chromosomes occurs that ends up reducing the number of chromosomes, while this type of process is absent in meiosis II. Meiosis I and meiosis II go through the same five stages; prophase, prometaphase, metaphase, anaphase and telophase. The main difference comes in the prophase of meiosis I, which is longer and more complicated than in the process of meiosis II.

It is the process of cell division in which the number of chromosomes remains the same and four haploid daughter cells are formed from the haploid stem cell. It is simpler and a shorter process compared to meiosis I and in this the two chromatids of the replicated chromosome are separated. Meiosis II resembles the process of mitosis, which is an asexual process of cell division that occurs in all organisms. Apart from the great resemblance to the mitosis process, the difference it has is the presence of two stem cells instead of the single stem cell. The process of meiosis II, which ends with four daughter cells, is the short-lived process in which the crossing of chromosomes does not occur and, in addition, the sister chromatids are separated in this process.

Key differences

1. In meiosis I, the number of chromosomes is halved and haploid daughter cells are formed from the diploid stem cell, while in meiosis II the number of chromosomes remains the same and four haploid daughter cells are formed from of the haploid stem cell.
2. Compared to meiosis II, meiosis I is a more complicated and longer type of cell division.
3. Meiosis II is very similar to the process of mitosis.
4. Chromosome crossing occurs in meiosis I, although it is absent in meiosis II.