Reproduction: Asexual vs.
Sexual
Cell division is how organisms grow and repair themselves. It is also how many
organisms produce offspring. For many single-celled organisms, reproduction is a
similar process. The parent cell simply divides to form two daughter cells that are
identical to the parent. In many other organisms, two parents are involved, and the
offspring are not identical to the parents. In fact, each offspring is unique. Look at
the family in Figure below. The children resemble their parents, but they are not
identical to them. Instead, each has a unique combination of characteristics
inherited from both parents.
Reproduction is the process by which organisms give rise to offspring. It is one of
the defining characteristics of living things. There are two basic types of
reproduction: asexual reproduction and sexual reproduction.
Asexual Reproduction
Asexual reproduction involves a single parent. It results in offspring that are
genetically identical to each other and to the parent. All prokaryotes and some
eukaryotes reproduce this way. There are several different methods of asexual
reproduction. They include binary fission, fragmentation, and budding.
Binary fission occurs when a parent cell splits into two identical daughter
cells of the same size.
Fragmentation occurs when a parent organism breaks into fragments, or
pieces, and each fragment develops into a new organism. Starfish, like the one
in Figure below, reproduce this way. A new starfish can develop from a single
ray, or arm. Starfish, however, are also capable of sexual reproduction.
Budding occurs when a parent cell forms a bubble-like bud. The bud stays
attached to the parent cell while it grows and develops. When the bud is fully
developed, it breaks away from the parent cell and forms a new organism.
Budding in yeast is shown in Figure below.
Binary Fission in various single-celled organisms (left). Cell division is a relatively
simple process in many single-celled organisms. Eventually the parent cell will pinch
apart to form two identical daughter cells. In multiple fission (right), a multinucleated
cell can divide to form more than one daughter cell. Multiple fission is more often
observed among protists.
Starfish
reproduce by
fragmentation
and yeasts
reproduce by
budding. Both
are types of
asexual
reproduction.
Asexual reproduction can be very rapid. This is an advantage for many organisms. It
allows them to crowd out other organisms that reproduce more slowly. Bacteria, for
example, may divide several times per hour. Under ideal conditions, 100 bacteria can
divide to produce millions of bacterial cells in just a few hours! However, most
bacteria do not live under ideal conditions. If they did, the entire surface of the
planet would soon be covered with them. Instead, their reproduction is kept in check
by limited resources, predators, and their own wastes. This is true of most other
organisms as well.
Sexual Reproduction
Sexual reproduction involves two parents. As you can see from Figure below, in
sexual reproduction, parents produce reproductive cellscalled gametesthat unite
to form an offspring. Gametes are haploid cells. This means they contain only half
the number of chromosomes found in other cells of the organism. Gametes are
produced by a type of cell division called meiosis, which is described in detail in a
subsequent concept. The process in which two gametes unite is called fertilization.
The fertilized cell that results is referred to as a zygote. A zygote is diploid cell,
which means that it has twice the number of chromosomes as a gamete.
