1. (c) Pigment deposits (PD) occur in many cell types and may contain various complex substances, such as lipofuscin or melanin. Lipofuscin granules represent an accumulating by-product of lysosomal digestion in long-lived cells, but melanin granules serve to protect cell nuclei from damage to DNA caused by light. Many cells contain pigmented deposits of hemosiderin granules containing the protein ferritin, which forms a storage complex for iron. Hemosiderin granules are very electron dense, but with the light microscope they appear brownish and resemble lipofuscin. The liver cells shown have large cytoplasmic regions filled with pigment deposits, which probably represent iron-containing hemosiderin. X400. Giemsa.
Source: Chapter 2. The Cytoplasm, Junqueira’s Basic Histology, 13e
Citation: Mescher AL. Junqueira’s Basic Histology, 13e; 2013 Available at: Accessed: October 02, 2017
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