Fig. 1. Electron micrographs showing developing merozoites in late stages schizonts of Plasmodium falciparum. (A) Transmission electron micrograph (TEM) of a red blood cell containing a late-stage schizont that is in the process of budding off merozoites. The arrow indicates the residual body containing haemozoin crystals. Scale bar, 1 µm. (B) Scanning electron micrograph of a schizont from which the surrounding red blood cell and parasitophorous vacuole membranes have been lost to expose a series of merozoites budding off from the larger residual body (arrow). Scale bar, 1 µm. (C) TEM of a late-stage merozoite bud within a red blood cell, showing a rhoptry (rh) at the apical end, with closely grouped micronemes (white arrow). Two dense granules (dg) are also visible close to the nucleus (nuc). Scale bar, 200 nm. (D) TEM of the apical region of a merozoite, showing the positions of a rhoptry (rh), micronemes (mn) and three polar rings in section (black arrowheads). Scale bar, 100 nm. (E) TEM of a longitudinally sectioned merozoite within a red blood cell, showing an earlier stage of development than in (C) and (D). Micronemes (small black arrows) have not yet reached their apical position but are spread out between the Golgi cisterna (go) and the apical prominence (left). Notice the two dense granules (dg) near the Golgi cisterna, part of the nucleus (nuc) and a cluster of coated vesicles (cv) between the nucleus and the Golgi cisterna. Scale bar, 200 nm.