Is the HpO phenomenon in tropical populations really genetic?
Long-term studies of 98 unselected adults from a rural African community in Mali where malaria is endemic showed that the haptoglobin level of the blood increased significantly after 1 year of continuous anti-malarial treatment. This seems to indicate that hypo- or anhaptoglobinaemia in populations like this may in a considerable number of cases have a non-genetic basis.
D000328:Adult; D002738:Chloroquine / Q000627:therapeutic use; D005260:Female; D006242:Haptoglobins / Q000235:genetics / Q000378:metabolism*; D006801:Humans; D008288:Malaria / Q000097:blood* / Q000188:drug therapy / Q000235:genetics; D008297:Male; D010641:Phenotype; D013997:Time Factors
D006242:Haptoglobins; D002738:Chloroquine