Hemozoin

Haemozoin is a disposal product formed from the digestion of blood by some blood-feeding parasites. These hematophagous organisms such as Malaria parasites (Plasmodium spp.), Rhodnius and Schistosoma digest haemoglobin and release high quantities of free heme, which is the non-protein component of hemoglobin. A heme is a prosthetic group that consists of an iron atom contained in the center of a heterocyclic porphyrin ring. Free heme is toxic to cells, so the parasites convert it into an insoluble crystalline form called hemozoin. In malaria parasites, hemozoin is often called malaria pigment.