Question

practice mini frq
you are working in a research lab and your goal is to determine the effect that alcohol has on the liver. you design an experiment where you expose samples of liver tissues to varying concentrations of alcohol as follows:

sample	concentration of alcohol	duration of exposure
sample 2	0.35 mg/ml	20 minutes
sample 3	0.45 mg/ml	20 minutes

after exposure to the alcohol, you analyze the liver samples. in all samples, you find that the alcohol has been broken down (detoxified). however, in sample 3, you find damage to organelles due to the high concentration of alcohol. (a) identify one organelle in the liver that could be responsible for the detoxification of alcohol in all three samples. (b) in sample 3, identify the organelle that would most likely be responsible for removing the damaged parts of organelles. (c) describe the steps the organelle identified in part (b) would take to remove the damaged parts.

Explanation:

(a) The smooth endoplasmic reticulum (SER) in liver cells contains enzymes that help detoxify substances like alcohol.
(b) Lysosomes are responsible for breaking down and removing damaged organelle parts. They contain hydrolytic enzymes for this purpose.
(c) First, lysosomes approach the damaged organelle. Then, they fuse with the damaged - part of the organelle. Finally, the hydrolytic enzymes within the lysosome break down the damaged components into smaller, recyclable molecules.

Answer:

(a) Smooth endoplasmic reticulum (SER)
(b) Lysosome
(c) 1. Lysosome approaches damaged organelle. 2. Lysosome fuses with damaged - part. 3. Hydrolytic enzymes break down components.