ABSTRACT
Members of the Kinetoplastida possess a number of features unique in nature. These include the kinetoplast and the editing of mitochondrial DNA, a mini-exon sequence that is spliced to all messenger RNAs, trypanothione (see Chapter 44) and the glycosome. The glycosome is a peculiar microbody-like organelle, resembling the peroxisomes of other eukaryotic cells, which was described for the first time by Opperdoes and Borst (1977). The glycosome has been the subject of extensive study during recent years, not only the organelle in the African trypanosome Trypanosoma brucei, but also those in a number of other representatives of the order Kinetoplastida. Because an extensive review has appeared recently (Opperdoes, 1987), this chapter provides only a short overview of the latest findings related to the glycosome. It includes also some data on the organelle from organisms other than T. brucei, such as Leishmania, T. cruzi, Phytomonas and Trypanoplasma sp.
