sickle cell anemia

Causes  Hemoglobin S  Recessive  11 th chromosome  Single letter change  Valine—glutamic acid mJZuQ&feature=related

Symptoms  Sickle blood cells cause:  Blocking of blood flow  Pain--Crises  Infection  Organ damage  Swelling

Treatment  None widely available  Stem Cell Transplants—few cases

Prognosis  Before—death between ages of 20 and 40  Now—live until 50-60

Who’s got it?  Most likely: African, Mediterranean, South and Central American, Caribbean, Middle Eastern people

Do you want to know?  Dangerous disease  Early death  Extreme pain

Genetic Testing  Pain  Treatment-$$$  Death  No liability  Low emotional impact  Medications

Carrier vs. Patient  Carrier=okay (don’t strain)  Patient=bad (crises, pain)  Codominance-ish

Pooja Joshi and Matthew Dozer Period 3 Mr. Hames November 2011