Antioxidative Potential of Foetal Haemoglobin in Sickle Cell Disease

Background: Oxidative stress is a clinical condition in sickle cell disease (SCD) that results from increased production of reactive oxygen species (ROS). High Foetal haemoglobin (HbF) is beneficial in sickle cell disease due to its ability to resist polymerization with sickle haemoglobin. The aim of this study is to determine the anti-oxidative potential of HbF in subjects with SCD.

Methods: Whole blood was used for the determination of HbF concentration while serum was used for the assay of Glutathione peroxidase (GPx), Super-oxide dismutase (SOD), and malondialdehyde (MDA). Alkali denaturation method was used for the determination of HbF while spectrophotometric method was used to assay for the various oxidative stress markers.

Results: The concentrations of HbF and MDA were significantly higher in the case subjects compared to the normal subjects. A direct relationship was observed between GPx (r = 0.47) and SOD (r = 0.46) with HbF. However, an inverse relationship was observed between MDA with HbF (r= -0.33), GPx (r= -0.18) and SOD (r= -0.26).

Conclusion: We conclude that HbF potentially associates with the antioxidant enzymes (GPx and SOD) to counteract the oxidative effect of ROS in SCD.