he human alpha globin gene cluster located on chromosome 16 spans about 30 kb and includes seven loci: 5- zeta - pseudozeta - mu - pseudoalpha-1 - alpha-2 - alpha-1 - theta - 3. The alpha-2 (HBA2) and alpha-1 (HBA1) coding sequences are identical. These genes differ slightly over the 5 untranslated regions and the introns, but they differ significantly over the 3 untranslated regions. Two alpha chains plus two beta chains constitute HbA, which in normal adult life comprises about 97% of the total hemoglobin, alpha chains combine with delta chains to constitute HbA-2, which with HbF (fetal hemoglobin) makes up the remaining 3% of adult hemoglobin. Alpha thalassemias result from deletions of each of the alpha genes as well as deletions of both HBA2 and HBA1, some nondeletion alpha thalassemias have also been reported. [provided by RefSeq, Jul 2008]
