Document Type
Article
Publication Date
1-1-2006
Abstract
Thalassaemia is an inherited blood disorder and is a significant public health problem in Malaysia, with many not knowing they carry gene for thalassaemia. The two major forms are alpha and beta thalassaemia. An individual can co-inherit both the alpha and beta thalassaemia genes. This study determined the frequency of cincurrent carriers of alpha thalassaemia in 231 beta thalassaemia carriers. Gap-PCR was done on extracted DNA of the beta thalassaemia samples to check for alpha thalassaemia 1 molecular defect. Eight (3.5) samples were found to have concurrently inherited the alpha thalassaemia 1 deletion. The significant carrier rare for alpha thalassaemia 1 indicates the need for the implementation of DNA analysis to complement thalassaemia screening in high risk populations.
Keywords
Thalassaemia, Concurrent carries, screening, gene interaction
Divisions
fac_med
Publication Title
Medical Journal of Malaysia
Volume
61
Issue
2
Publisher
Malaysian Medical Association
Additional Information
Department of Molecular Medicine, Faculty of Medicine Building, University of Malaya, 50603 Kuala Lumpur, MALAYSIA