Download Sickle Cell anemia

SICKLE CELL ANEMIA
JORDAN WILLIAMS
SICKLE CELL ANEMIA IS A GENETIC
DISORDER THAT AFFECTS THE
SHAPE OF A HUMAN’S RED
BLOOD CELLS.
A normal red blood cell is round and can easily move through the
narrow blood vessels.
People with the disorder have red blood cells that are in sickle shape.
It is harder for the cells to travel through the vessels and can cause a
buildup.
The disorder affects the molecule hemoglobin, which aids in the
delivery of oxygen to cells.
Hemoglobin S is the result of the genetic disorder which disfigures the
cell into its sickle, or crescent, shape.
REGULAR RED BLOOD CELLS
RED BLOOD CELLS WITH SICKLE
CELL ANEMIA
EXPRESSION OF SICKLE CELL ANEMIA
• The sickle cell mutation is on chromosome 11 which codes for the beta unit of hemoglobin. The effects of the
sickled shape of the cells causes organ damage and pain.
• Due to the buildup of red blood cells in the blood vessels, oxygen is prohibited from arriving in organs such
as the spleen, liver, kidneys, lungs, heart, and other vital organs. The organs will ultimately fail if they don’t
receive the necessary oxygen.
• The genetic disorder can also cause slowed growth, strokes, paleness, fatigue and abdominal pain.
• People have a dangerously low count of red blood cells (anemia) which gives the disease its name.
• People in the past with the disorder were not expected to live past childhood but due to advances in medical
care, they have a higher chance of living past childhood.
INHERITANCE OF SICKLE CELL ANEMIA
• The inheritance of sickle cell anemia is by autosomal recessive patterns where the offspring cannot
inherit the disease unless it receives the mutated gene from both of its parents.
• People who have only one copy of sickle cell trait are known to be carriers of it. They aren’t diagnosed
with the disease and have no symptoms of the genetic disorder. However, they can pass the gene to
their offspring.
• The disease most frequently affects African Americans in the United States (1 out of 500). Sickle cell
anemia is most common among residents from Africa, Middle East, Mediterranean and the Caribbean
because the carriers of the hemoglobin mutation are far more resistant to the disease malaria.