Round or circular organelle which is produced from the plasma membrane, Golgi bodies or endoplasmic reticulum is called Lysosome.
Discovery: In 1955 De. Duve first introduced its name.
Position: All the animal cells are enriched with lysosome except the R.B.C. of mammals. Including few lower types of plants, such as- slime molds, fungi and algae, most of the plant cells have lysosomes.
Size and shape: The shape of Lysosome is changeable like Amoeba. Their volume may be, usually from 0.4 to 0.8 μ.
Structure: Each lysosome is covered with a protein made membrane and it looks like around vacuole Inner pan of Lysosome is changeable. Different types of hydrolytic enzymes are found in the lysosome.
Function:
(i) Its main function is to engulf germs following the process “Phagocytosis”.
(ii) It helps in digestion.
(iii) Lysosome destroys the unimportant cells.
(iv) They can solve the acute food crisis transitorily by destroying different organelles. But in the long run, the whole cell may die and this phenomenon is known as “autophagy”.
