Essay On Sickle Cell Anemia

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Sickle-cell anemia is a genetic disorder that makes your body produce red blood cells that are abnormal in shape. This disease is also widely known as hemoglobin SS disease. Unlike normal red blood cells, sickle cells are rigid and tenacious. Due to their shape and rigidness, they can block blood flow. In turn, this could cause organ damage to the body. Sickle cells are also fragile and die very easily due to the fact sickle cells have a lifespan of twenty days instead of the normal one hundred and twenty days for normal red blood cells.This causes the body to have a lower blood cell count, hence the name anemia in sickle cell anemia.
Hemoglobin SS happens because of a mutation in chromosome 11. Chromosome 11 contains the gene of hemoglobin-Beta. Hemoglobin (HBB) transports oxygen to your body parts like your lungs. Hemoglobin contains 2 alpha hemoglobin and 2 beta hemoglobin chains. Sickle cell anemia results from a point mutation. There is a change in the sixth amino acid in the beta hemoglobin chain from GLU to VAL. The Hemoglobin S gene is then resulted from this and is a rece...

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