<P> In cell biology, the spindle apparatus (or mitotic spindle) refers to the cytoskeletal structure of eukaryotic cells that forms during cell division to separate sister chromatids between daughter cells . It is referred to as the mitotic spindle during mitosis, a process that produces genetically identical daughter cells, or the meiotic spindle during meiosis, a process that produces gametes with half the number of chromosomes of the parent cell . </P> <P> Besides chromosomes, the spindle apparatus is composed of hundreds of proteins . Microtubules comprise the most abundant components of the machinery . </P>

Describe the role of the spindle in cell division