Which event occurs last in cell division?

• A. Metaphase
• B. Anaphase
• C. Telophase
• D. Cytokinesis

Answer: (D)

Understanding the order of events in cell division highlights that the final step is cytokinesis, the division of the cytoplasm that splits one cell into two daughter cells. After chromosomes are separated during mitosis, the nuclear envelopes reform around each set of chromosomes (the telophase stage). Only after this does the cytoplasm divide: in animal cells, a contractile ring creates a cleavage furrow that pinches the membrane inward to produce two separate cells; in plant cells, vesicles coalesce at the center to form a cell plate that becomes separating cell walls. Because cytokinesis completes the physical separation into two cells, it is the last event in cell division.