This electron micrograph shows an area of smooth endoplasmic reticulum consisting of tortuous tubules and vesicles. This field is from a liver cell. The smooth endoplasmic reticulum serves to metabolize glycogen (which are deposited as black rosettes over the area), and it contains enzymes needed to detoxify drugs.
In adrenal cortical cells (as well as steroid producing cells in the gonads), the smooth endoplasmic reticulum serves to metabolize the steroids and produced the final steroid hormone. After the side chain of cholesterol is cleaved in the mitochondria, the product is passed to the smooth endoplasmic reticulum and further modified. Then, it is passed back to mitochondria for final modifications. Thus, the two organelles play a sort of "steroid volleyball" to produce the steroid hormone.
