Aggresome

Aggresomes are structures that form in response to accumulation of misfolded proteins in the cytosol. Aggresome formation is a regulated process that occurs in response to overload of the protein folding- and degradation systems, due to cellular stress or disease. Insoluble aggregates of misfolded proteins, or inclusion bodies, are actively transported along microtubules to the perinuclear region, and collected in an area adjacent to or around the centrosome, where they become enclosed in a capsule of intermediate filaments. Aggresome formation enables sequestration of aggregated proteins and facilitates their clearance by a selective form of autophagy, sometimes called aggrephagy, thereby protecting the cell from cytotoxic effects.

Immunofluorescent staining

An aggresome can be seen as a dense cytoplasmic inclusion, which is usually found close to the nucleus in a region where the microtubule network is disrupted. Some cell lines are more prone to aggresome formation than others.

Read more about the proteome of aggresomes as a substructure of the cytosol.