Coined 1882 from Greek 'mitos' (thread) — named for the visible threads chromosomes form during cell division.
A type of cell division that results in two daughter cells each having the same number and kind of chromosomes as the parent nucleus.
Coined in 1882 by German anatomist Walther Flemming in his landmark work on cell division, from Greek mitos (thread, warp thread) plus the suffix -osis (process, condition). Mitos referred to the thread on a loom — Flemming chose it because he observed the chromosomes form thread-like structures (which he called Fadenfiguren, thread figures) during cell division. The PIE root behind mitos is uncertain but may connect to *mei- (to tie, fasten). The suffix -osis is from Greek
Walther Flemming named 'mitosis' from Greek 'mitos' (thread) because the chromosomes looked like threads under his microscope. He also coined 'chromatin' (colored material) for the substance that forms chromosomes. His original term for the whole process was 'karyokinesis' (nucleus-movement), but 'mitosis' prevailed — the thread metaphor
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