Alpha thalassemia and its impact on other clinical conditions.
Mild alpha thalassemia is the most prevalent genetic trait worldwide. We have recently developed a multiplex polymerase chain reaction method to screen for the most common deletions which give rise to alpha thalassemia. The authors have used this method to investigate a potential association of alpha thalassemia with hypertension. Our results show that the prevalence of hypertension in hospitalized blacks who have the -alpha 3.7 deletion is 71 percent higher than the prevalence in hospitalized blacks who do not have the deletion. The authors present a potential mechanism to explain this association.
Bowie
L J
LJ
Department of Pathology, Northwestern University Medical School, Chicago, USA.
Reddy
P L
PL
Beck
K R
KR
D002885:Chromosomes, Human, Pair 16; D004247:DNA / Q000032:analysis; D017353:Gene Deletion; D005914:Globins / Q000235:genetics; D006801:Humans; D017085:alpha-Thalassemia / Q000145:classification / Q000175:diagnosis* / Q000235:genetics*
D005914:Globins; D004247:DNA