PBL Sickle Cell Disease. LORENA VALES

Sickle Cell disease. Case Study

Sickle cell disease is an inherited blood disorder that affects red blood cells. This disease gets its name from the shape of the red cells on the low oxygen conditions; sometimes they become sickle-shaped and have difficulty passing through small blood vessels.
The sickle cell gene causes the body to make abnormal hemoglobin because of a mutation of this gene. This mutation is thought to have originated in areas of the world where malaria was common.
Hemoglobin is the rich protein that gives blood its red color and carries oxygen from the lungs to the rest of the body, Normal red blood cells contain hemoglobin A.
Normal red blood cells are soft and round and can squeeze through tiny blood vessels. People with sickle cell conditions make a different form of hemoglobin A called hemoglobin S (S stands for sickle). Red blood cells containing mostly hemoglobin S do not live as long as normal red blood cells. They also become stiff, distorted in shape and have difficulty passing through the body’s small blood vessels. When sickle-shaped cells block these small vessels, less blood can reach that part of the body. Tissue that does not receive a normal blood flow eventually becomes damaged. This is what causes the complications of sickle cell disease, resulting in lung tissue damage, pain episodes in arms, legs, chest and abdomen, stroke and painful prolonged erection. It also causes damage to most organs including the spleen, kidneys and liver. Damage to the spleen makes sickle cell disease patients, especially young children, easily exposed by certain bacterial infections. Our biological macromolecules which are composed by carbon, hydrogen and oxygen are strongly affected. Their main functions are to be a source of energy for the body and to provide structural support. These macromolecules are also known as sugars.

Biology, the science of the study of life, has many aspects to it and many specializations within Sickle cell disease some of it’s branches can be :
Anatomy - the study of the animal form, with an emphasis on human bodies.
Biochemistry - the study of the chemical reactions required for life to exist and function.
Bioinformatics - also classified as a branch of information technology (IT) it is the study, collection, and storage of genomic data.
Biomathematics or Mathematical Biology - the study of biological processes through mathematics, with an emphasis on modeling.
Biomechanics - the study of the mechanics of living beings.
Cell Biology - the study of the cell as a complete unit. The molecular and chemical interactions that occur within a living cell.
Ethology - the study of animal behavior.
Evolutionary Biology - the study of the origin and decent of species over time .
Genetics - the study of genes and heredity.

Macrobiology - the study of biology on the level of the macroscopic individual as a complete unit.
Mammology - the study of mammals.
Medicine - the study of the human body in health and disease.
Molecular Biology - the study of biology and biological functions at the molecular level.

Sickle cell anemia is an inherited disease. People who have the disease inherit two copies of the sickle cell gene, one from each parent. There is currently no universal cure for sickle cell disease.
As this is an inherit disease, people who have sickle cell trait usually have no symptoms and have normal lives. However, they can pass the sickle cell gene to their children.

Prevent Sickle-Cell Anemia
Have a blood test done to see if you are a sickle-cell carrier. A small blood sample will be taken and analyzed for hemoglobin S. If you have sickle cells in your blood but do not experience any symptoms, then you have the sickle-cell trait, which can put your children at risk for having the full condition.
Speak with your doctor if you and your spouse have a history of sickle-cell anemia in your families or if you have the sickle-cell trait. This condition is a recessive trait, meaning that both parents must pass it on for the child to have it. Each child has a 25 percent chance of having sickle-cell anemia if both parents have the trait.
Start your child on penicillin when he is 2 to 4 months old if blood tests determined he has sickle-cell anemia. Antibiotics are essential to prevent infections and diseases that can occur due to the child's weakened immune system. He may need to take penicillin regularly until he's 5 to 6 years old to prevent pneumonia.

TREATMENT
The goals of treating sickle cell anemia are to relieve pain; prevent infections, eye damage, and strokes and control complications.
A bone marrow transplant can work well for treating sickle cell anemia. This treatment may even offer a cure in a small number of cases. However, the procedure is risky and can lead to serious side effects or even death. Because of this, only some people can or should have this procedure.
Blood transfusions are commonly used to treat worsening anemia and sickle cell complications. A sudden worsening of anemia due to an infection or enlargement of the spleen is a common reason for a blood transfusion.

Many sciences get involved in the study of Sickle cells disease
Genetic Sciences which is focus on the genes and heredity of each body.
Biology in general is the study of the living things.
Computer Science which controls the mutations in each sector by making a data base.
Ethics: Genetics research raises many ethical, legal, and social issues.
Anatomy: with is the study of the human body and its functions.

The first gene alteration which causes the disease is by a cell, the smallest structural unit of an organism, then it affects the tissue that does not receive a normal blood flow so it eventually becomes damaged, so the organs are such as lung arms, spleen, kidneys and liver, as this organs are affect their systems are, such as the circulatory system, respiratory system, etc. The human organism becomes weak as the disease is getting worst.
Sickle cell disease is hereditary so the population is in danger as well, and so the biological community with interacts directly with the patient and all factors around itself.

In my opinion, it is very important to have conscious about this disease, and to find preventive ways so we can avoid being affected. The life expectancy of sickle cell-anemia patients has risen over the past few decades so it is important to be informing about the ways of prevention and treatment.
This is how evolution works, mutations occur random and they may or may not have positive consequences.

How to Prevent Sickle-Cell Anemia | eHow.com http://www.ehow.com/how_2091958_prevent-sickle-cell-anemia.html#ixzz0zk4JOjJN
http://www.nhlbi.nih.gov/health/dci/Diseases/Sca/SCA_Summary.html
http://www.sicklecelldisease.org/about_scd/index.phtml
http://genetics-education-partnership.mbt.washington.edu/download/sicklecell.pdf
http://www.bellaonline.com/articles/art28786.asp

My country NICARAGUA "HUMAN RIGHTS!

NICARAGUA

President: Daniel Ortega (2007)

Land area: 46,430 sq mi (120,254 sq km); total area: 49,998 sq mi (129,494 sq km)

Population (2010 est.): 5,995,928 (growth rate: 1.7%); birth rate: 22.77/1000; infant mortality rate: 24.1/1000; life expectancy: 71.8; density per sq km: 48.

Nicaragua borders Honduras to the north and Costa Rica to the south.Nicaragua and Managua, are connected by the Tipitapa River. The Pacific coast is volcanic and very fertile. The swampy Caribbean coast is aptly called the “Mosquito Coast.”

Government :Republic.

Nicaragua, which derives its name from the chief of the area's leading Indian tribe at the time of the Spanish Conquest, was first settled by the Spanish in 1522. The country won independence in 1838. For the next century, Nicaragua's politics were dominated by the competition for power between the Liberals, who were centered in the city of León, and the Conservatives, centered in Granada.

RELIGION: Religious freedom and religious tolerance is promoted by both the Nicaraguan government and the constitution.Although Nicaragua has no official religion it is nominally Roman Catholic. Practicing Roman Catholics are no longer the majority and are declining while evangelical Protestant groups and Mormons are growing rapidly have been growing since the 1990s. There are also strong Anglican and Moravian communities on the Caribbean coast.

 CULTURE :Nicaragua has strong folklore, music and religious traditions, deeply influenced by European culture but enriched with Amerindian sounds and flavors. The west of the country was colonized by Spain and has a similar culture to other Spanish-speaking American countries. The eastern half of the country, on the other hand, was once a British protectorate. English is still predominant in this region and spoken domestically along with Spanish and indigenous languages. Its culture is similar to that of Caribbean nations that were or are British possessions, such as Jamaica, Belize, The Cayman Islands, etc.
 

LANGUAGE: Spanish, or Nicañol as Nicaraguan Spanish is sometimes referred to, is spoken by 90% of the country's population. In the Caribbean coast many afro-Nicaraguans and creoles speak English and creole English as their first language.

EDUCATION: Education is free for all Nicaraguans.[5] Elementary education is free and compulsory, however, many children in rural areas are unable to attend due to lack of schools and other reasons. Communities located on the Caribbean coast have access to education in their native languages.