Practice question

Asymmetric division preserves tissue architecture by simultaneously producing one copy of mother stem cell retaining niche attachment and one daughter committed to differentiation and departure. Niche signals maintain polarity proteins that orient mitotic spindle perpendicular to basement membrane, ensuring one daughter remains niche-attached retaining integrin signaling and high Wnt activity, while other detaches and encounters differentiation cues like high Notch ligand or Wnt attenuation. This outcome maintains stem pool size during homeostasis unlike symmetric divisions that either expand or deplete pool, and it operates in both multipotent and unipotent contexts widely.