Dna replication takes place during the portion of the cell cycle.
the enzyme rna polymerase builds short rna segments called required before dna polymerase can build the complementary strand of dna.
because dna synthesis proceeds in the 5’ to 3’ direction, the is replicated in short pieces called okazaki fragments.
respond to the following based on your reading.

what's dna replication, and why is it an important part of cell division?
explain what semiconservative dna replication is and how it is different from conservative and dispersive models of dna replication.
name the five major enzymes involved in dna replication and briefly explain their roles in the process.
discuss the differences between eukaryotic and prokaryotic cell division and dna replication.
: 1interphase
2primers
3lagging strand
dna replication is the process of duplication of dna, which accompanies cell division to ensure that each daughter cell produced has a copy of the cell's entire genetic content. without dna replication, some daughter cells would not contain dna and would not be able to further divide.
in semiconservative replication, the parent strands are separated, and each parent strand serves as the template for a new strand of dna. therefore, in semiconservative replication, each dna molecule has one parent strand and one newly synthesized strand. in conservative replication, the parent dna synthesizes an entirely new double-stranded molecule; one of the resulting strands would be entirely parental dna, and one of the resulting strands would be entirely newly synthesized dna. in dispersive replication, the parental dna and the newly synthesized dna would be mixed together so that both of the resulting dna molecules would contain fragments of both parental and newly synthesized dna on both strands.
dna polymerase, helicase, primase, topoisomerase, and ligase are five key enzymes involved in dna replication. dna replication begins when helicase unzips the double-stranded dna molecule and creates a replication fork. topoisomerase binds to the replication fork to stabilize the unwound, separated strands of dna. primase creates rna primers so dna polymerase can add nucleotides to the primer and then to the newly formed strand of dna. this produces two double helices of dna, each with one parent strand and one newly synthesized strand. after the rna primers are removed, ligase binds together the nicks on the leading strand and between the okazaki fragments on the lagging strand.
eukaryotic cells have a nucleus and membrane-bound organelles, while prokaryotic cells do not. therefore, eukaryotic dna replication occurs in the cell nucleus during a period of the cell cycle known as interphase, which occurs before mitosis. prokaryotic dna replication occurs in the cytoplasm. just as in eukaryotic cell division, the prokaryotic cell duplicates its genetic content, and then the cell splits in half to create two exact copies of the original cell. the process of prokaryotic cell division is referred to as binary fission.