Question

Do lysosomes contain DNA?

Answer 1

Hint: Lysosome is a spherical, membrane bound organelle which is found in almost all animal cells. It comprises hydrolytic enzymes that are responsible for the breakdown of several biomolecules and is also involved in other cellular processes.

Complete answer:
The size of lysosomes varies greatly, it can range from 0.1 micrometer to 1.2 micrometer and has a pH of around 5 making it more acidic than the cytosol whose pH is around 7. The membrane of the lysosome protects the cytosol from the lytic enzymes of it. The cell is also known to protect itself from the lytic enzymes of the lysosome by maintaining a different pH since these enzymes are pH sensitive and do not work at pH other than that found in the lysosome.

The pH of the lysosome is maintained by the help of proton pumps as well as chloride ion channels. The lysosome is known to comprise more than sixty different enzymes and more than fifty membrane proteins. The enzymes of the lysosome are made in the rough endoplasmic reticulum from where they are sent to the golgi apparatus and finally packed into small vesicles that fuse with larger acidic vesicles.

The synthesis of the enzymes is controlled by the transcription factor EB that also promotes transcription of some nuclear genes. The lysosome thus does not contain any DNA, it contains only enzymes and proteins that help to serve its function.

Thus lysosomes do not contain any DNA.

Note: The enzymes are very important components of the lysosome, any mutation in the genes of the enzymes leads to genetic disorders, cancers, age related diseases as well as cardiovascular diseases.