Characterization of the products of the heme detoxification pathway in malarial late trophozoites by X-ray diffraction.
In a process inhibited by the quinoline antimalarial drugs, Plasmodia detoxify heme released during the degradation of hemoglobin by aggregating it into malarial pigment, an insoluble crystalline heme coordination polymer. Synchrotron x-ray powder diffraction patterns for intact desiccated malarial trophozoites and synthetic beta-hematin have been measured; both materials correspond to a single crystalline triclinic lattice with unit cell parameters a = 12.2176(4), b = 14.7184(5), c = 8.0456(3) A; alpha = 90.200(2), beta = 96.806(3), gamma = 97.818(3) degrees and Z = 2. These results unambiguously demonstrate that hemozoin crystallites are identical to synthetic beta-hematin.
Bohle
D S
DS
Department of Chemistry, University of Wyoming, Laramie 82071-3838, USA. bohle@uwyo.edu
Dinnebier
R E
RE
Madsen
S K
SK
Stephens
P W
PW
D000818:Animals; D055598:Chemical Phenomena; D002621:Chemistry; D006418:Heme / Q000378:metabolism*; D006420:Hemeproteins / Q000737:chemistry; D006427:Hemin / Q000737:chemistry; D010860:Pigments, Biological / Q000737:chemistry; D010963:Plasmodium falciparum / Q000378:metabolism*; D014961:X-Ray Diffraction
D006420:Hemeproteins; D010860:Pigments, Biological; C020753:hemozoin; D006418:Heme; D006427:Hemin