Haem facts for kids
A haem (British English) (or heme (American English) is a type of co-factor. It is an iron ion in the center of a large organic ring called a porphyrin.
Not all porphyrins contain iron, but many porphyrin-containing metalloproteins have haem as their co-factor; these are known as haemoproteins. Haems are components of haemoglobin, the red pigment in blood. They are also components of a number of other haemoproteins.
Images for kids
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Binding of oxygen to a heme prosthetic group.
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The heme group of succinate dehydrogenase bound to histidine, an electron carrier in the mitochondrial electron transfer chain. The large semi-transparent sphere indicates the location of the iron ion. From PDB 1YQ3.
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Heme breakdown
See also
In Spanish: Hemo para niños
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Haem Facts for Kids. Kiddle Encyclopedia.