Spatial distribution of heme species in erythrocytes infected with Plasmodium falciparum by use of resonance Raman imaging and multivariate analysis.

The multivariate algorithm hierarchical cluster analysis is applied to sets of resonance Raman spectra collected from human erythrocytes infected with the malaria parasite Plasmodium falciparum. The images obtained yield information about the distribution of hemoglobin and hemozoin (or malaria pigment) within the parasitized cells and about their molecular structure. This method has the advantage of conveying more information than other imaging approaches based on resonance Raman spectroscopy, and it is a promising tool to study the hemozoin formation process and its interaction with antimalarial drugs within unstained, well-preserved parasites.