Significance of mitosis:

1. Maintenance of the chromosomal set:

The importance of mitosis is the maintenance of the chromosomal set i.e. each daughter cell receives chromosomes that are alike in composition and equal in number to the chromosomes of the parent cell.

2. Development and Growth:

The number of cells within an organism increases by mitosis and this is the basis of development from a single cell zygote to the multicellular body and the growth 3. Cell Replacement: Cells are constantly sloughed off, dying, and being replaced by new ones in the skin and digestive tract. When damaged tissues are repaired, the new cells must be exact copies of the cells being replaced to retain the normal function of cells. Similarly, red blood cells have short life spans of about 4 months and need to be replaced constantly by mitosis.

4. Regeneration:

Some organisms can regenerate parts of the body, and the production of new cells is achieved by mitosis. For example, a sea star regenerates its lost arm through mitosis.

5. Asexual reproduction:

Some organisms produce genetically similar offspring Mitosis is a means for asexual reproduction. For example, hydra reproduces asexually by budding. During this process, mitosis forms a mass of cells called bud on the surface of the hydra. The mitosis continues in the cells of the bud and it grows into a new individual. The same happens during asexual reproduction (vegetative propagation) in plants.