Omegasome

The omegasome is a cell organelle consisting of lipid bilayer membranes enriched for phosphatidylinositol 3-phosphate (abbreviated PI(3)P or PtdIns3P), and related to a process of autophagy.

[1] It is a subdomain of the endoplasmic reticulum (ER),[2] and has a morphology resembling the Greek capital letter Omega (Ω).

[4] Autophagy (from Greek words for "self" and "eating") is a process of digesting or degrading cytoplasmic molecules (proteins, lipids, sugars and organelles).

[9] The phagophore expands to accommodate the items, until the omegasome is closed to produce the roughly spherical autophagosome.

[13] Omegasomes display significant functional roles in different biochemical pathways which assist in various autophagosome processes.

Figure from original paper, showing line diagrams of phagosomes arising from omegasomes (part D).

Illustration showing steps from omegasome to autolysosome. ^{[

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