A 39-year-old member asked:
Is sickle-cell anemia and malaria a virus or a bacteria spread disease?
1 doctor answer • 2 doctors weighed in
A Verified Doctoranswered
31 years experience
See below: Sickle cell anemia is caused by a mutation in the beta-hemoglobin gene. The disease is inherited. Malaria is a disease caused by a parasite that infects red blood cells (rbcs), transmitted by the bite of infected mosquitoes. Sickle cell anemia is somewhat protective against malaria, since sickle cell disease shortens the lifespan of an rbc and interrupts the lifecycle of the malaria parasite.
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4.5k viewsReviewed >2 years ago
Last updated Oct 13, 2014
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