A guide to classifying mitotic stages and mitotic defects in fixed cells

Cell division is fundamental to life and its perturbation can disrupt organismal development, alter tissue homeostasis, and cause disease. Analysis of mitotic abnormalities provides insight into how certain perturbations affect the fidelity of cell division and how specific cellular structures, molecules, and enzymatic activities contribute to the accuracy of this process. However, accurate classification of mitotic defects is instrumental for correct interpretation of data and formulation of new hypotheses. In this article, we provide guidelines for identifying specific mitotic stages and for classifying normal and deviant mitotic phenotypes. We hope this will clarify confusion about how certain defects are classified and help investigators avoid misnomers, misclassification, and/or misinterpretation, thus leading to a unified and standardized system to classify mitotic defects.