Methemoglobinemia
In class the other day, we talked about a disease that had to do with keratin. It made me think about how so many things in our bodies can go wrong. I wanted to research a disease that most people have never even heard of. I was searching various diseases and one that caught my eye was the disease called Methemoglobinemia. This is a type of blood disorder that produces abnormal amount of methemoglobin in the blood. Now we all know that too much of a good thing can be bad. So, what exactly is Methemoglobin? It is a type of hemoglobin that is unable to bind to oxygen. We know that hemoglobin has a Fe2+ (Ferrous) but methemoglobin has a Fe3+ (Ferric). This is something that is detrimental because our bodies need oxygenated blood to survive and if we do not have oxygen, we can ultimately die. People who have this disease, their blood is dark brown. Their skin also has a blueish appearance. A severe case of this disease is life threatening. People tend to feel tired and weak. A medicine called methylene blue is used to treat severe cases. Ascorbic acid and hyperbaric oxygen therapy can also be used. You are able to get this due to genetics.
This disease has a lot to do with me Cell and Molecular Biology class. We learn so much about the cells of our bodies and how the cells are able to help the body function as a whole. Red blood cells are a type of cells that help oxygenate our blood and any malfunction could be serious. We may never know every single disease that exists but learning about them one by one is a step.
Works Cited
https://ghr.nlm.nih.gov/condition/methemoglobinemia-beta-globin-type
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