The chemical mechanism of β-haematin formation studied by Mössbauer spectroscopy

Spontaneous formation of β-haematin (malaria pigment) from haematin in acetate solution follows pseudo-zero-order and not autocatalytic kinetics. Acetate appears to facilitate the reaction by solubilizing the haematin and acting as a phase-transfer catalyst, a role which, in vivo, could be fulfilled by carboxylic acids or amino acids.