Absence of β-Globin Synthesis and Excess of α-Globin Synthesis in Homozygous β-Thalassaemic Subjects from the Ferrara Region

β-THALASSAEMIA is a genetically determined anaemia of man, characterized by a decrease in production1–6 or the absence7 of β-globin, and by an excess of α-globin synthesis4,6–8, which results in the α/(β + γ + δ) globin synthesis ratio largely exceeding the normal value of 1.0.