👉 In biology and biochemistry, vacuoles are specialized organelles located in a cell's cytoplasm that store waste products or excess substances. They are often referred to as "laboratory vacuoles" because they are typically found within cells under normal conditions but can be seen at the end of a cell cycle when there is an accumulation of waste products. Vacuoles are key components of the endoplasmic reticulum (ER), which is a complex network of