Hemoglobin Savannah (B6(24) β-glycine→valine): an unstable variant causing anemia with inclusion bodies

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Abstract

An abnormal hemoglobin, termed Hb Savannah, was found in red cell hemolysate of a young Caucasian girl with severe hemolytic anemia. The presence of this unstable variant became evident when inclusion bodies appeared rapidly upon exposure of red cells to redox dyes and a large percentage of hemoglobin in hemolysate precipitated on warming to 65°C. Treatment of the hemoglobin with p-hydroxymercuribenzoate (PMB) caused a rapid dissociation into monomers; starch-gel electrophoresis of PMB-treated hemoglobin showed the presence of abnormal β-chains. Data from structural studies of isolated β-chains indicated substitution of a valyl residue for the normally occurring glycyl residue at position 24, which corresponds to helical residue B6. A similar substitution but with an arginine replacing the glycyl residue has been observed in Hb Riverdale-Bronx. The glycine to valine substitution will change the relationship of the B and the E helices which results in extensive conformational changes in the β-chain. This change presumably causes an increased dissociation of the hemoglobin molecule into dimers and probably monomers, and a decreased stability of the αβ-dimers. The hemoglobin abnormality may be the result of a fresh mutation because the abnormality is not present in the parents nor in any of the seven siblings.

Authors

T. H. J. Huisman, Audrey K. Brown, G. D. Efremov, J. B. Wilson, Cecelia A. Reynolds, R. Uy, Linda L. Smith