hemoglobin S

noun

: an abnormal hemoglobin that occurs in the red blood cells in sickle cell anemia and sickle-cell trait

Examples of hemoglobin S in a Sentence

Recent Examples on the Web
Examples are automatically compiled from online sources to show current usage. Read More Opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback.
However, if one parent passes down the hemoglobin S gene and the other does not, the child will only carry the sickle cell trait. Maggie Aime, Msn, Health, 20 Sep. 2024 The nucleotide substitution in the HBB gene—producing what’s known as hemoglobin S, in contrast to normal hemoglobin A—is heritable. Maryn McKenna, Scientific American, 17 Sep. 2024 The result is hemoglobin S—a misshapen version that causes red blood cells to sickle. Dhruv Khullar, The New Yorker, 22 Mar. 2022 But hemoglobin S congeals into taut strands, making the blood cells that carry it fragile and rigid, as though a balloon were filled with shards of ice. Dhruv Khullar, The New Yorker, 22 Mar. 2022

Word History

First Known Use

1954, in the meaning defined above

Time Traveler
The first known use of hemoglobin S was in 1954

Dictionary Entries Near hemoglobin S

Cite this Entry

“Hemoglobin S.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/hemoglobin%20S. Accessed 23 Dec. 2024.

Medical Definition

hemoglobin S

noun
: an abnormal hemoglobin occurring in the red blood cells in sickle cell anemia and sickle-cell trait and differing from hemoglobin A in having a valine residue substituted for the glutamic-acid residue in position 6 of two of the four polypeptide chains making up the hemoglobin molecule

More from Merriam-Webster on hemoglobin S

Love words? Need even more definitions?

Subscribe to America's largest dictionary and get thousands more definitions and advanced search—ad free!