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Related Concept Videos

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Symbiotic relationships are long-term, close interactions between individuals of different species that affect the distribution and abundance of those species. When a relationship is beneficial to both species, this is called mutualism. When the relationship is beneficial to one species but neither beneficial nor harmful to the other species, this is called commensalism. When one organism is harmed to benefit another, the relationship is known as parasitism. These types of relationships often...
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Related Experiment Video

Updated: May 21, 2026

Preparing Lamellae from Vitreous Biological Samples Using a Dual-Beam Scanning Electron Microscope for Cryo-Electron Tomography
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Published on: August 5, 2021

The malaria digestive vacuole.

Juliane Wunderlich1, Petra Rohrbach, John Pius Dalton

  • 1Institute of Parasitology, McGill University, Ste. Anne de Bellevue, Quebec, Canada.

Frontiers in Bioscience (Scholar Edition)
|June 2, 2012
PubMed
Summary

Malaria parasites digest erythrocyte hemoglobin in a digestive vacuole (DV). This organelle

Area of Science:

  • Molecular and Cellular Parasitology
  • Biochemistry
  • Drug Discovery

Background:

  • Malaria parasites develop within human erythrocytes, utilizing a digestive vacuole (DV) organelle.
  • The DV processes erythrocyte hemoglobin to supply amino acids essential for parasite growth.
  • Heme, a toxic byproduct of hemoglobin digestion, is detoxified into hemozoin within the DV.

Purpose of the Study:

  • To investigate the biogenesis and function of the malaria parasite's digestive vacuole (DV).
  • To understand the role of the DV in nutrient acquisition and heme detoxification.
  • To explore the DV's involvement in antimalarial drug action and resistance mechanisms.

Main Methods:

  • Isolation of the digestive vacuole (DV) organelle from malaria parasites.

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  • Biochemical analysis of DV-associated proteins and their transport pathways.
  • Investigation of DV membrane ion pumps and transporters.

    • Main Results:

    • The DV is a low-pH organelle essential for processing 60-80% of erythrocyte hemoglobin.
    • Heme detoxification via biocrystallization to hemozoin occurs within the DV.
    • DV membrane transporters are critical for maintaining low pH and are implicated in drug resistance.

    Conclusions:

    • The digestive vacuole (DV) is a central organelle for malaria parasite nutrition and heme detoxification.
    • Understanding DV function and biogenesis is key to developing new antimalarial strategies.
    • The DV's ion transport systems represent potential targets for overcoming drug resistance.