2. Outlines
o History/Discovery
o Other names
o Occurrence
o Morphology
o Biochemical properties
o Origin/Biogenesis
o Function-in plants and animals
3. Historical
• An Italian neurologist Camillo Golgi in 1873 discovered Golgi apparatus
• By reporting the existence of such an organelle inside cell, he raised a
storm of controversy known as Golgi controversy
4. Other names
• Due to their high lipid contents, Golgi apparatuses were called lipochondria.
• Since originally these were known to be networks, they were also called
“dictyosomes”. (Gr., dictyes=net)
• Also known as Golgi complex, Golgisome, Golgi bodies, Golgi material,
Golgi membrane, etc
• Golgi apparatus of plants or lower invertebrates is usually referred to as
Golgi body or dictyosome
5. Occurrence
• The Golgi apparatus occurs in all cells except the prokaryotic (viz.,
mycoplasmas, bacteria and blue green algae) and eukaryotic cells of certain
fungi, sperm cells of bryophytes mature sperms or red blood cells of
animals.
• One animal cell usually contain a single Golgi apparatus. But number vary
from cell to cell and from animal to animal.
• Nerve cells ,liver cell and oocytes have multiple Golgi apparatuses.
• Single algal cell contains 25,000 Golgi apparatuses
7. Morphology
• The Golgi apparatus is morphologically very similar in both plant and
animal cells
• Its shape and form vary from cell to cell
• Golgi apparatus appears as a complex array of interconnecting tubules,
vesicles and cisternae
a. Cisternae or flattened sac- Simplest unit of Golgi apparatus is cisterna.
This is a membrane bound space in which various materials and secretions
may occur. Numerous cisternae are associated and appear in a stack like.
The group of cisternae is called the dictyosome and group of dictyosomes
make up the cells Golgi apparatus
8. Cont..
b. Tubules- A complex array of associated vesicles and tubules (30-50nm in
diameter) surround the dictyosome
c. Vesicles-vesicles are of three types
i) transitional vesicles- form as blebs from the transitional ER to Golgi
ii) Secretory vesicles- occurs between Golgi and plasma membrane
iii) Clathrin coated vesicles- plays role in intra-cellular traffic of membranes
and secretory product's.
9.
10. Biochemical properties of Golgi apparatus
a) Glycosyl transferase and thiamine pyrophosphatase- Localized in the
cisternae. Transferase enzymes are present in the membrane of Golgi
apparatus
b) Acid phosphatase- present in GERL region
c) Golgi apparatus of animal cell contain following important enzymes-
oxidoreductase, phospholipase, kinase, glycosyl transferases and
glucotransferases
11. Origin
• Method of origin of Golgi apparatus is de novo formation
• Individual stacks of cisternae may arise from the pre-existing stacks by
division or fragmentation
• Membrane of Golgi apparatus originates from the membrane of smooth
endoplasmic reticulum
• Cells of dormant seeds of higher plants generally lack Golgi apparatuses
12. Functions
• Golgi vesicles are often , referred to as the “traffic police” of the cell. They
play a key role in sorting many of the cells proteins and membrane
constituents and in directing them to their proper destinations
• Golgi enzymes adds signal or tag such as carbohydrates or phosphate
residues to certain proteins to direct them to their proper destination.
• In plants, Golgi apparatus is mainly involved in the secretion of materials
of cell walls (lipids, glycoprotein, cellulose, hemicellulose and lignin)
• Involved in the cell plate and cell membrane formation of daughter cells.
13. Cont..
• In animals Golgi apparatus is involved in the packaging and exocytosis of
the i) Mucus (glycoprotein) ii) Lactoprotein secretion by mammary glands
iii) secretion of collagen iv) formation of melanin and other pigments
• It is also involved in the formation of cellular organelles like plasma
membrane, lysosomes, acrosome of spermatozoa and granules of oocytes
