Molecular heterogeneity of alpha thalassemia and its relationship with other haemoglobinopathies in a tribal population from Sian Village, Birbhum, West Bengal

An investigation of alpha and beta globin genes in 100 tribals of Sian Village, Birbhum, West Bengal showed higher incidence of beta thalassemia carriers (9%). A high percentage of co-inheritance of deletional alpha mutations in homozygous / compound heterozygous state was observed in this population. This is the first report of coexistence of alpha and beta thalassemia in Santal population of West Bengal. Acknowledgements : The authors are grateful to the Department of Biotechnology, Ministry of Science and Technology, Government of India, New Delhi for financial assistance. The authors are also grateful to the Secretary, Vivekananda Institute of Medical Sciences, Ramakrishna Mission Seva Pratisthan, for providing facilities and partial support.