Obligatory asymmetric replication is also known as asymmetric cell division is the process by which a stem cell undergoes differentiation or division. The final result of which are two daughter cells. [1]
One cell is identical to the mother cell and the other a totally differentiated one. This is one of the processes in regenerative medicine that allows stem cells to undergo to maintain their number and form a “stem cell reserve.” The other process is known as stochastic differentiation.
Published Clinical Citation
[1] ^Ralph A. Neumüller,Juergen A. Knoblich Dividing cellular asymmetry: asymmetric cell division and its implications for stem cells and cancer Genes Dev. 2009 Dec 1; 23(23): 2675–2699.
doi: 10.1101/gad.1850809