Question

Main function of dictyosome is
A. Storage
B. Respiration
C. Secretion
D. Breakdown of fats

Answer 1

Hint: Dictyosomes are the membranous structures present in plant cells. They are indirectly associated with the endoplasmic reticulum. They accumulate the raw materials used by cells to synthesize various cellular structures.

Complete answer:
Plant cells are the eukaryotic cells and have several membrane-bound organelles to perform specific functions. Vacuoles are the single membrane-bound organelles present mostly in the center of a plant cell. Vacuoles store the water, water-soluble pigments, and waste products. The nutrients are stored in leucoplasts of the plant cells. Carbohydrates, oils, and proteins are stored in amyloplasts, elaioplasts, and aleuroplasts respectively.

Mitochondria is the site for aerobic respiration in cells where a large number of ATP molecules are produced. Glyoxysomes are the microbes present in the cytoplasm of the plant cells. They contain the enzymes involved in the oxidation of fat and are generally associated with chloroplasts.

Dictyosomes are the stacks of flat membranous discs. They are distributed throughout the cytoplasm of a plant cell. As proteins are synthesized on the surface of a rough endoplasmic reticulum, they are delivered to the dictyosomes where the carbohydrates attached to the proteins are modified. Complex polysaccharides are assembled in the dictyosomes and are packed into the small vesicles which then pinch off and travel to the plasma membrane. The fusion of these vesicles with the plasma membrane releases the content outside the cell.

In this way, dictyosomes secrete the polysaccharides that are the structural components of the cell wall. Dictyosomes also modify and transport the enzymes synthesized on the endoplasmic reticulum to the target subcellular compartment or structure. Therefore, the main functions of the dictyosomes are modification, packaging, and secretion of the substances.

Hence, the correct answer is option (C).

Note: Aggregates of the dictyosomes in the animal cells are termed as the Golgi apparatus. The basic structure and therefore, the function of the dictyosome and Golgi apparatus are the same. They both collect and store the molecules and distribute them to their destination.