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Hemoglobin The pigment found in human and animal blood cells. It's what makes blood red. The primary function of hemoglobin is to carry oxygen and carbon dioxide around inside the body. Oxygenated hemoglobin is bright red, and it gives blood its usual color. When the oxygen molecules are released into the tissues, however, hemoglobin turns greenish. This explains why venous, deoxygenated blood appears darker than arterial, oxygenated blood. |