Microchromatographic quantitation of hemoglobin A levels in phenotypes of sickle cell-beta thalassemia

The inheritance of the sickle cell gene in combination with a gene for á+ thalassemia results in a spectrum of sickle cell-á+ thalassemia syndromes with varying levels of hemoglobin A (HbA). Some severe sickle cell-á+ thalassemia syndrome have small amounts of HbA, which may be difficult to quantitate in the presence of fetal hemoglobin. A microcolumn chromatographic method, using 0.5 M Tris-acetic acid developers with varying pH values from 9.0 to 6.0 appears to adequately quantitate small amounts of HbA. This method is relatively simple and cheaper than high-performance liquid chromatography, a major consideration in developing countries.(AU)