What process results in the formation of four reproductive cells, each with half the number of chromosomes found in the parent cell?

The process that results in the formation of four reproductive cells, each containing half the number of chromosomes found in the parent cell, is meiosis. This type of cell division is essential for sexual reproduction and occurs in germ cells to produce gametes—sperm and eggs in animals.

During meiosis, a single diploid cell undergoes two rounds of division (meiosis I and meiosis II) to produce four haploid cells. In meiosis I, homologous chromosomes are separated, reducing the chromosome number by half. This reduction is crucial because it ensures that when gametes unite during fertilization, the resulting offspring have the correct diploid number of chromosomes.

In contrast, mitosis is a process of cell division that results in two genetically identical daughter cells with the same diploid number of chromosomes as the parent cell. Binary fission is a method of asexual reproduction primarily used by prokaryotic organisms, producing two identical cells. Regeneration refers to the process by which organisms can regrow lost body parts, rather than a reproductive process. Therefore, meiosis is specifically tailored to produce haploid reproductive cells, distinguishing it from these other processes.