What are lysosomes?

Lysosomes are single membrane-bound organelles found in animal cells. It contains a large range of digestive enzymes capable of splitting most biological macromolecules such as a peptide, nucleic acids, and carbohydrate.

The enzyme proteins found in lysosomes are first made in the endoplasmic reticulum. These proteins are sent to the Golgi apparatus for post-modification. The Golgi apparatus makes pinches out small vesicles that contain these digestive enzymes. The vesicles become lysosomes. They are released from the Golgi apparatus into the cytoplasm.

Lysosomes play a huge role in programmed cell death, autophagy, and clearing out damaged structures. This organelle can fuse with other organelles in order to digest larger structures.

Lysosomes are membrane-bound organelles in a cell. A lysosome contains digestive enzymes, which are known as hydrolytic enzymes. This organelle functions to digest and remove waste materials. It plays a huge role in cell programmed death, known as apoptosis. Lysosomes are also helpful in destroying foreign bodies like viruses and bacteria. When a cell is damaged, it is moved to the lysosome, the lysosome opens up and engulfs of the damaged cell. Once inside the lysosome, the digestive enzyme begins to break down the damaged material. For the hydrolytic enzymes to work, they require an acidic (low PH) environment to function. After breaking down the material, the lysosomes expel the remains into a cell in the form of a vesicle. The vesicle is expelled from the cell through the cell membrane.