Title:
Method of Hemoglobin-F Determination
Category:
Diagnostic
NCS:
Inventor: Tim R. Randolph
Summary:
Sickle cell anemia is one of the most commonly inherited genetic diseases, annually affecting approximately 275,000 births worldwide. Established treatments involve infection prophylaxis, pain management, and blood transfusion with iron chelation. A more recent approach to treatment involves the drug hydroxyurea to increase expression of fetal hemoglobin (HbF) to reduce the frequency of vaso-occlusive events. However, patients exhibit a wide range of baseline HbF levels and response to this drug. Since hydroxyurea is mildly carcinogenic, HbF levels must be monitored during treatment to determine the minimum effective dosage. This invention relates generally to a simple and cost-effective method of quantitative HbF measurement using non-hazardous reagents and suitable for laboratories in the developing world.
Patent:
U.S. patent application PCT/US/2013/071234
Manager:
Stephanie Kimzey, MBA