GOLGI COMPLEX ( GOLGI APPARATUS = GOLGI BODY)

The Nobel laureate, Camilla  Golgi (1898)  discovered  the  presence of a special,  small group  of interconnecting  membranous  structures, generally occupying  a definite  position  near the nucleus. It was later named  as Golgi  complex  ,It has now been recognized  as a differentiated portion  of the  end membrane   system  related to the endoplasmic  reticulum ER on one  side  and to certain secretory  vesicles  leading  to  the plasma  membrane  on the other   thus  this part  of the endomembrane  or vacuolar   system  is sinterposed between  the ER  and cell exterior.

Structurally,  Golgi  complex  consists  of one  more  uo to 50 in  secretory  cells  of animals and up to  thousand  in secretory cells  of plants  units  called  dictyosomes . Each  dictyosome , in turn  consists of 3to 7  overlapping  flattened and curved  sacs  bordered by tubules, vesicles and vacuoles  forming  or cis face close  to the nucleus or endoplasmic  retriculum  ER and a concave and  distal. Maturing or trans phase towards  plasma membrane . The cis face  is marked  by  the presence  of small  transition  vesicles  or tubules which  continuously  form by the  breaking off of adjacent  smooth  endoplasmic  reticulum  and then unite  to form  new proximal  cistern of a dictyosome.  At its maturing  phase, the distal  cistern is continuously   lost  by its  breaking  off into secretory  vesicles . Thus   there is a continuous   renewal   of the   dictyosomes.  Each component of a dictyosome  is bound  by smooth  trilaminar  unit  membrane  like the SER and plasma membrane.

Functions of Golgi complex:   The major  functions  of golgi  complex  are related  to the   fact that it is a special endomembrane compartment  interposed  between ER and extracellular  medium Through  it there is a continuous traffic of fluids  macro molecules. Membrane  components and other cell constituents.