Editing Lysosome (section)

==Discovery==
[[File:Christian de Duve.tif|thumb|Christian de Duve, age 95, presenting his ideas on the origin of the eukaryotic cell (October 2012)]]
[[Christian de Duve]], a Belgian scientist at the Laboratory of Physiological Chemistry at the [[Université Catholique de Louvain|Catholic University of Louvain]], is credited with discovering lysosomes in the 1950s. De Duve and his team were studying the distribution of hydrolytic enzymes such as [[acid phosphatase]] within cells, using [[cell fractionation]] methods to isolate subcellular components. De Duve and his team identified an unknown organelle that was rich in acid phosphatase. This led them to propose the existence of lysosomes as membrane bound organelles containing digestive enzymes capable of breaking down a variety of biological molecules.

Using [[differential centrifugation]] and enzyme activity assays, the team confirmed the hypothesis and understood that these organelles play a crucial role in intracellular digestion processes, such as [[phagocytosis]] and [[autophagy]]. The presence of digestive enzymes was further validated using electron microscopy. De Duve’s discovery laid the foundation for new research into lysosomal functions and understanding disorders which could lead to undigested materials accumulating in the cell. De Duve was awarded the [[Nobel Prize in Physiology or Medicine]] in 1974.<ref name="Sabatini Adesnik Christian de Duve">{{cite journal |last1=Sabatini |first1=David D. |last2=Adesnik |first2=Milton |title=Christian de Duve: Explorer of the cell who discovered new organelles by using a centrifuge |journal=Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences |date=13 August 2013 |volume=110 |issue=33 |pages=13234–13235 |doi=10.1073/pnas.1312084110 |doi-access=free |pmc=3746853 |pmid=23924611 |bibcode=2013PNAS..11013234S }}</ref><ref>{{cite book |last1=Cooper |first1=Geoffrey M. |title=The Cell: A Molecular Approach |edition=2nd |date=2000 |publisher=Sinauer Associates |chapter-url=https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/books/NBK9953/ |chapter=Lysosomes }}</ref>