DNA Variants Involved in Regulation of Fetal Hemoglobin in Mexican Patients with Sickle Cell Disease. a Preliminary Analysis

HbS (HBB:c.20A>T, beta 6 Glu>Val) is a frequent Hb variant in Mexico, in particular in some regions close to the Pacific and Atlantic Oceans, with carrier frequencies from 0.5 to 12.8%, therefore Sickle Cell Disease patients are often seen in those regions. It is well known that increased levels of Fetal Hemoglobin (HbF) ameliorates the clinical complications of sickle cell disease. Several genetic studies have identifiedBCL11A,HBS1L-MYB(intergenic region),HBG2andHBBP1genes, among others, to be involved in HbF regulation; DNA variants in theselociare associated to elevated HbF. The aim of present study was to analyze 15 variants in HbF regulatorylociin Mexican patients with Sickle Cell Disease. About 10 mL of peripheral blood was collected in EDTA for hematological and molecular testing from 24 sickle cell anemia patients (S/S) and 15 sickle cell trait carriers (S/A) from Southern Mexico, 13 were from the state of Guerrero and 26 from Chiapas. All subjects voluntarily agreed to participate in this study and gave signed informed consent; underaged patients' consent was obtained from their parents; all procedures were performed according to the ethical principles of the Declaration of Helsinki. Hemoglobin S genotype was determined by Sanger sequencing; DNA variants genotyping was performed by qPCR using commercial Taqman probes for the following variants: inBCL11Ars11886868, rs4671393, rs7557939, rs1427407, rs766432, rs6706648, rs7599488; inHBS1L-MYBrs7776054, rs28384513, rs9399137, rs4895441, rs9402686, rs1320963, inHBG2rs7482144 and inHBBP1rs10128556. Hematological and clinical data were analyzed by IBM SPSS v24®. A total of 39 sickle cell patients were studied, twenty-one patients were male and 18 were female (53.8% and 46.2% respectively). Thirty-two were pediatric age patients and 7 adults. Anemia was observed in all S/S patients, eight had severe anemia (