What is typically the result of meiosis in terms of chromosome number?

Meiosis is a specialized type of cell division that reduces the chromosome number by half to produce gametes, which are the reproductive cells in sexually reproducing organisms. This process starts with a diploid cell, which contains two sets of chromosomes, one from each parent. During meiosis, the cell goes through two rounds of division (meiosis I and meiosis II) but only one round of DNA replication. As a result, each of the four daughter cells produced at the end of meiosis will contain only one set of chromosomes, making them haploid cells.

This reduction in chromosome number is crucial for maintaining the species' chromosome count across generations. When haploid gametes fuse during fertilization, they form a diploid zygote, thus restoring the diploid chromosome number in the next generation.

In summary, meiosis reliably results in the formation of haploid cells, which is essential for sexual reproduction.