Golgi bodies. Coloured transmission electron micrograph (TEM) of three Golgi bodies (green). The Golgi body is an organelle that functions as a central delivery system for the cell. Its primary function is to modify, store and transport proteins and lipids made elsewhere in the cell. The organelle's structure consists of a stack of flattened, membranous, disc-like structures called cisternae. The cisternae contain enzymes that help to modify proteins passing through the organelle. The Golgi body is named after the Italian histologist Camillo Golgi, who first identified the structure in 1898.