Sickle cell trait has repeatedly been identified as a major human
Why is sickle cell anemia resistant to malaria?
People develop sickle-cell disease, a condition in which the red blood cells are abnormally shaped, if they inherit two faulty copies of the gene for the oxygen-carrying protein haemoglobin. The faulty gene persists because even carrying one copy of it confers some resistance to malaria.
Which is worse sickle cell or malaria?
Specific malaria mortality was higher in the non-sickle cell disease population (6%) as compared to the sickle cell population (3%) (OR: 1.8, CI: 0.9–3.5, p-value = 0.07).
