{"id":1306,"date":"2026-06-25T10:17:43","date_gmt":"2026-06-25T10:17:43","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/materials.simplycurrentaffairs.com\/?p=1306"},"modified":"2026-07-02T10:31:37","modified_gmt":"2026-07-02T10:31:37","slug":"sickle-cell-anaemia","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/materials.simplycurrentaffairs.com\/index.php\/2026\/06\/25\/sickle-cell-anaemia\/","title":{"rendered":"Sickle Cell Anaemia"},"content":{"rendered":"\n

Sickle Cell Anaemia<\/strong><\/strong><\/strong><\/strong><\/strong><\/strong><\/strong><\/strong><\/strong><\/strong><\/strong><\/strong><\/strong><\/strong><\/strong><\/strong><\/strong><\/strong><\/strong><\/strong><\/strong><\/strong><\/strong><\/strong><\/strong><\/strong><\/strong><\/strong><\/mark><\/strong><\/h2>\n\n\n\n

About<\/strong><\/strong><\/strong><\/strong><\/strong><\/strong><\/strong><\/mark><\/strong><\/h3>\n\n\n\n
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  • Sickle Cell Anaemia is a hereditary genetic disorder<\/mark><\/strong> affecting haemoglobin<\/strong>, the oxygen-carrying component of blood.\u00a0\n
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    • Haemoglobin has two alpha and two beta subunits, and mutations in the beta gene<\/strong> cause red blood cells<\/strong> to become sickle-shaped like the letter \u201cC.\u201d<\/strong><\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<\/li>\n\n\n\n
    • <\/li>\n\n\n\n
    • Normal red blood cells are flexible and move smoothly through blood vessels, whereas sickle-shaped cells become rigid, slowing or blocking blood flow.<\/strong> <\/li>\n\n\n\n
    • They also have a shorter lifespan<\/strong>, leading to reduced oxygen supply<\/strong> and causing complications<\/strong> such as chronic anemia, pain, fatigue, acute chest syndrome, and stroke.<\/strong><\/li>\n<\/ul>\n\n\n\n

      Prevalence in India:<\/strong><\/strong><\/strong><\/strong><\/strong><\/strong><\/strong><\/strong><\/strong><\/h4>\n\n\n\n
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      • India<\/strong> has the highest prevalence in South Asia<\/strong>, with over 20 million affected individuals. <\/li>\n\n\n\n
      • Highly prevalent among tribal populations<\/strong> (e.g., Bhil, Gond, Madia) and is concentrated in the central belt <\/strong>(Gujarat, Maharashtra, Chhattisgarh, Odisha), with pockets in southern states. <\/li>\n\n\n\n
      • Key challenges include low awareness, inadequate screening, and poor healthcare access<\/strong> in rural\/tribal areas.<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n\n\n\n

        Treatment:<\/strong><\/strong><\/strong><\/strong><\/strong><\/strong><\/strong><\/strong><\/strong><\/strong><\/h4>\n\n\n\n
          \n
        • Sickle cell anaemia is a hereditary disorder<\/strong>, making its complete elimination difficult <\/strong>without major scientific advances.  <\/li>\n\n\n\n
        • At present, the only potential cures are gene therapy and stem cell transplantation<\/strong>\u2014both expensive and still under development.  <\/li>\n\n\n\n
        • Gene therapy <\/strong>works by modifying the DNA of the haemoglobin gene to correct the defect, while stem cell transplantation <\/strong>involves replacing the diseased bone marrow with healthy donor marrow; both approaches are currently in clinical trial stages worldwide.  <\/li>\n\n\n\n
        • In the absence of definitive cures, blood transfusion<\/strong> remains a commonly used treatment, though it faces challenges<\/strong> such as limited donor availability, concerns over safe blood supply, and the risk of infections.<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n\n\n\n
          \n

          National Sickle Cell Anaemia Elimination Mission:<\/strong><\/strong><\/strong><\/strong><\/strong><\/strong><\/strong><\/strong><\/strong><\/h4>\n\n\n\n
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          • In 2023, the Government of India launched the National Sickle Cell Anaemia Elimination Mission <\/strong>to address the pressing health challenges posed by sickle cell disease, particularly among the tribal population.  <\/li>\n\n\n\n
          • The mission marks a crucial milestone in the Government\u2019s ongoing efforts to eliminate sickle cell disease as a public health problem by 2047.<\/strong><\/li>\n<\/ul>\n\n\n\n

            Note:<\/strong><\/strong><\/strong><\/strong><\/strong><\/strong><\/strong><\/strong><\/strong><\/h4>\n\n\n\n
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            • In India, Sickle Cell Anaemia<\/strong> is recognized as a disability under the Rights of Persons with Disabilities Act, 2016 (RPWD Act)<\/strong>, and individuals with this condition may be eligible for certain rights and benefits afforded to persons with disabilities.<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<\/div><\/div>\n\n\n\n

              Why in News?<\/strong><\/strong><\/strong><\/strong><\/strong><\/strong><\/strong><\/strong><\/mark><\/strong><\/h3>\n\n\n\n
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              • The Ministry of Tribal Affairs recently organized a workshop on \u201cBIRSA 101\u201d,<\/strong> India\u2019s first indigenous CRISPR-based gene therapy for Sickle Cell Disease<\/strong>.<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n\n\n\n
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                CRISPR:<\/strong><\/strong><\/strong><\/strong><\/strong><\/strong><\/strong><\/strong><\/strong><\/strong><\/h4>\n\n\n\n
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                • CRISPR, which stands for Clustered Regularly Interspaced Short Palindromic Repeats, <\/strong>is a revolutionary gene-editing technology<\/strong> that allows scientists to locate and correct errors in DNA<\/strong>, the genetic blueprint inside every cell of the human body, with extraordinary precision. <\/li>\n\n\n\n
                • It works using a protein <\/strong>calledCas9<\/strong>, which acts like molecular scissors<\/mark><\/strong>. A protein is a biological molecule that performs specific tasks inside the body.\u00a0\u00a0<\/li>\n\n\n\n
                • A separate guide molecule, essentially a GPS signal, directs these scissors to the exact location of the error in the DNA. The scissors cut, and the cell repairs itself using a corrected version of the instruction.<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<\/div><\/div>\n\n\n\n

                  BIRSA 101<\/strong><\/strong><\/strong><\/strong><\/strong><\/strong><\/strong><\/strong><\/strong><\/mark><\/strong><\/h3>\n\n\n\n
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                  • \u201cBIRSA 101\u201d, named after Bhagwan Birsa Munda<\/strong>, aims at elimination of Sickle Cell Disease, which particularly affects India’s tribal population. <\/li>\n\n\n\n
                  • It was developed by the CSIR\u2013Institute of Genomics and Integrative Biology (IGIB).<\/strong> <\/li>\n\n\n\n
                  • CSIR-IGIB is a premier Institute of CSIR, engaged in research of national importance in the areas of genomics, molecular medicine, bioinformatics and proteomics.<\/em> <\/li>\n\n\n\n
                  • The CRISPR system used in BIRSA 101\u2014enFnCas9<\/strong>\u2014is a guided protein that has the capacity to directly correct the mutation in the HBB gene<\/strong> responsible for producing sickle haemoglobin.  <\/li>\n\n\n\n
                  • The indigenous platform is expected to significantly reduce treatment costs<\/strong>, offering new hope to affected communities.<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

                    Sickle Cell Anaemia About Prevalence in India: Treatment: National Sickle Cell Anaemia Elimination Mission: Note: Why in News? CRISPR: BIRSA 101<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[15],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-1306","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-science-technology"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/materials.simplycurrentaffairs.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/1306","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/materials.simplycurrentaffairs.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/materials.simplycurrentaffairs.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/materials.simplycurrentaffairs.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/materials.simplycurrentaffairs.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=1306"}],"version-history":[{"count":2,"href":"https:\/\/materials.simplycurrentaffairs.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/1306\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":1311,"href":"https:\/\/materials.simplycurrentaffairs.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/1306\/revisions\/1311"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/materials.simplycurrentaffairs.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=1306"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/materials.simplycurrentaffairs.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=1306"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/materials.simplycurrentaffairs.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=1306"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}