The destruction of red blood cells is called hemolysis. Red blood cells carry oxygen to all parts of your body. If you have a lower than normal amount of red blood cells, you have anemia. When you have anemia, your blood can't bring enough oxygen to all your tissues and organs.

What happens when erythrocytes are destroyed?

The breakdown products are recycled or removed as wastes: Globin is broken down into amino acids for synthesis of new proteins; iron is stored in the liver or spleen or used by the bone marrow for production of new erythrocytes; and the remnants of heme are converted into bilirubin, or other waste products that are ...

How and when are erythrocytes normally destroyed?

Human red blood cells (RBCs) are normally phagocytized by macrophages of splenic and hepatic sinusoids at 120 days of age.