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Glycosome

The glycosome is a membrane-enclosed organelle that contains the glycolytic enzymes. The term was first used by Scott and Still in 1968 after they realized that the glycogen in the cell was not static but rather a dynamic molecule.[1] It is found in a few species of protozoa including the Kinetoplastida which include the suborders Trypanosomatida and Bodonina, most notably in the human pathogenic trypanosomes, which can cause sleeping sickness, Chagas's disease, and leishmaniasis. The organelle is bounded by a single membrane and contains a dense proteinaceous matrix. It is believed to have evolved from the peroxisome.[2] This has been verified by work done on Leishmania genetics.[3]

The glycosome is currently being researched as a possible target for drug therapies.

Glycosomes are unique to kinetoplastids and their sister diplonemids. The term glycosome is also used for glycogen-containing structures found in hepatocytes responsible for storing sugar, but these are not membrane bound organelles.[4]

Glycosomes in the trypanosomatid
  1. ^ Rybicka, Kielan (June 1996). "Glycosomes- the organelles of glycogen metabolism". Tissue and Cell. 28 (3): 253–265. doi:10.1016/s0040-8166(96)80013-9. PMID 8701432.
  2. ^ Parsons M (2004). "Glycosomes: parasites and the divergence of peroxisomal purpose". Mol Microbiol. 53 (3): 717–24. doi:10.1111/j.1365-2958.2004.04203.x. PMID 15255886.
  3. ^ Flaspohler, J.A.; Rickoll, W.L.; Beverley, S.M.; Parsons, M. (1997). "Functional identification of a Leishmania gene related to peroxin 2 reveals common ancestry of glycosomes and peroxisomes". Mol. Cell. Biol. 17 (3): 1093–1101. doi:10.1128/mcb.17.3.1093. PMC 231834. PMID 9032236.
  4. ^ Elaine, N; Jon Mallat, P B W (2008). Human Anatomy. San Francisco: Benjamin Cummings (Pearson). p. 697.

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