Lysosomes are acidic single-membrane organelles that serve as the major degradative sites for destructing cargoes resulting from endocytosis,phagocytosis and autophagy.Lysosomes can also secret contents via exocytosis by fusing with the plasma membrane.In addition,recent studies have revealed that the lysosome is an important intracellular signaling center that coordinates a variety of cellular processes including metabolism,signaling,and cell death.Defects in lysosome-mediated cellular degradation areinvolved in many human disorders such as autoimmune diseases,lysosome storage diseases(LSD)and neurodegenerative diseases.In spite of the essential role of lysosomes in cellular homeostasis,it is not well understood how lysosome function and dynamics are regulated.Taking advantage of the powerful genetic tools in C.elegans,we aim to identify essential regulators that are important for lysosome dynamics and lysosome-mediated cellular clearance.So far we have obtained many mutants exhibiting lysosomal defects by performing different genetic screens.Some of the affected genes in these mutants have been cloned and their functioning mechanisms are being investigated.We hope that our genetic and cell biological studies on lysosome and lysosome-mediated cellular degradation in C.elegans will contribute in a major way to the understanding of lysosome homeostasis and functions,as well as lysosome-related human diseases.