Cell Organelles Dicoverers

We have seen in the previous posts about all the organelles in an animal cell with their structure and functions. But have we wondered who discovered them? So, I just want to make it easy for you all by jotting down the organelles and their discoverers over here.

The Organelles of the Cell

1. Cell Membrane - Robert Hooke in 1665 first view the cells under the microscope and hence, he is credited with the discovery of cell membrane.
2. Centriole - Discovered by Edouard Van Beneden in 1883 and was described and coined by Theodor Boveri in 1888.
3. Centrosome - Discovered by Edouard Van Beneden in 1883 and was described and coined by Theodor Boveri in 1888.
4. Cytoskeleton - Nikolai K Koltsov in 1903 proposed that the shape of the cell is determined by the tubular network, the cytoskelton. However, the word was introduced and coined by Paul Wintrebert in 1931 (in French, cytosquelette).
   i. Microtubules - De Robertis and Franchi disovered microtubules in 1953 in nerve cell and later Sabatani, Bansch, Barnette in 1963 explained the structure of microtubule.
   ii. Microfilament/Actin Filaments - Edward David Korn discovered microfilament in 1968 in Acanthamoeba castellanii.
   iii. Intermediate Filaments - The groep of Howard Holtzer in 1968 discovered intermediate filaments.
5. Cytosol - Discovered in 1835and no single scientist can be accredited to its discovery.
6. Golgi Apparatus -Camillo Golgi identified it in 1897 and named after him in 1898.
7. Lysosomes - Discovered by Christian de Duve in 1949 (or 1950s).
8. Mitochondria - Albert von Kolliker studied mitochondria in muscle cell in 1857; Richard Altmann first recognized them as cell organelle in 1894; Term "mitochondria' coined by Carl Benda in 1898.
9. Nucleus - Robert Brown discovered cell nucleus in 1833.
10. Ribosomes -Discovered by George Palade in 1955.
11. Endoplasmic Reticulum - Albert Claude in Belgium and Keith Porter at Rockfeller Institue in 1945.
12. Vacuole - Antony van Leeuwenhoek is credited with discovery of vacuole when he was studying bacteria in 1676.
13. Plastids: 'Plastid' term was coined by Ernst Haeckel in 1866. however, in 1883, Andreas Schimper was the first to give the clear definition of plastid and he also explained the relationship between the different types. 
14. Nucleolus: The  nucleolus was first discovered in eel cells in 1774 by Felice Fontana.
15. Chromosomes: The chromosomes were first discovered by Karl Wilhelm von Nageli in 1842.

If any references are needed, feel free to contact me.!

Golgi Apparatus

Golgi apparatus, also called 'Golgi Complex' or simply 'Golgi' is the stack of flattened sacs which are bound by a single membrane also known as cisternae. They are important for packaging and transporting the molecules from one compartment/organelle of the cell to another for secretion from the cell.

Structure: 

As already mentioned, Golgi is the stack of flattened sacs. Golgi has four main regions as: cis-golgi, endo-golgi, trans-golgi and median-golgi networks. The vesicles are pinched off from the endoplasmic reticulum containing proteins and other biomolecules; fuses with the networks. The vesicles are gradually modified here and are further moved to other stacks and finally to trans golgi network. Here, they are packaged and are finally sent to their destination or released from golgi and moved to cell membrane for exocytosis.

Functions:

Golgi is basically involved in modifying and packaging of biomolecules for secretion from the cell by exocytosis.

It is also involved in the transport of lipids around the cell. It acts as a post office where it packages and labels different items which then sends them to different parts of the cell. 

The enzymes in the cisternae modifies the proteins by adding a phosphate group (phosphorylation) or carbohydrate chain (glycosylation) to the protein. These modifications sometimes forms the signal sequence which helps in determining the destination.

The golgi also play a role in apoptosis.