Question: In mitosis and meiosis how do metaphase and metaphase I differ?  Edit

Answer: A cell undergoing mitosis divides one time. The process involves different phases and those are interphase (G1 and G2), prophase, prometaphase, metaphase, anaphase, telophase, G1 interphase and G2 interphase. Prometaphase is often considered as the end of prophase and early metaphase. During this phase, a) the nuclear membrane gets disintegrated, b) kinetochores form on chromosomes and c) kinetochore microtubules get attached to the chromosomes. During metaphase, the chromosomes of the cell get aligned on a plane.

But a cell undergoing meiosis division divides two times - meiosis I and meiosis II. Meiosis I has following stages - prophase 1, metaphase 1, anaphase 1, and telophase 1. Meiosis II has following stages - prophase 2, metaphase 2, anaphase 2, and telophase 2. During metaphase 1, homologous pairs of chromosomes get aligned in the center of the respective cell. This random pattern is referred to as independent assortment.  Edit