Which of the following is not a stage of mitosis?

Mitosis is a process of nuclear division in eukaryotic cells which consists of several distinct stages: prophase, metaphase, anaphase, and telophase. Each of these stages plays a critical role in ensuring that daughter cells receive an identical set of chromosomes.

Interphase is often confused with a stage of mitosis but is technically not part of it. Instead, interphase is the phase of the cell cycle in which the cell prepares for division, encompassing processes like DNA replication and cell growth. It occurs before mitosis begins and lays the groundwork for the somatic cell division. Therefore, identifying interphase as not a stage of mitosis underscores the distinction between the preparatory phase of the cell cycle and the actual processes involved in mitotic division.

On the other hand, both prophase and metaphase are integral stages of mitosis, where specific activities such as chromatid condensation and chromosomal alignment occur. Cytokinesis, while often linked to mitosis, is technically the process that follows mitosis where the cytoplasm is divided into two daughter cells. Thus, understanding that interphase is outside the scope of mitosis clarifies why it is the correct selection in this context.