A mechanism for the destruction of pinosomes in cultured fibroblasts. Piranhalysis

The destruction of large pinosomes was examined with phase-contrast microscopy in cultured mouse fibroblasts. In areas of rapid pinosome breakdown, lysosomes were observed to repeatedly collide with pinosomes without fusing, tearing off small pieces until the pinosomes became smaller and denser. This segmentation of pinosomes by lysosomal collision has been named "piranhalysis."