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During prophase, the nucleus disappears, spindle fibers form, and DNA condenses into chromosomes (sister chromatids). During metaphase, the sister chromatids align along the equator of the cell by attaching their centromeres to the spindle fibers. During anaphase, sister chromatids are separated at the centromere and are pulled towards opposite poles of the cell by the mitotic spindle. During telophase, chromosomes arrive at opposite poles and unwind into thin strands of DNA, the spindle fibers disappear, and the nuclear membrane reappears.
Written By: Centromere, structure in a chromosome that holds together the two chromatids (the daughter strands of a replicated chromosome). The centromere is the point of attachment of the kinetochore, a structure to which the microtubules of the mitotic spindle become anchored. The spindle is the structure that pulls the chromatids to opposite ends of the cell during the cell division processes of mitosis and meiosis.