Globin synthesis in bone marrow cells of patients with sickle cell anemia and beta O-thalassemia: contamination of the beta-chain with non-globin proteins.

Chromatographic separation of labeled globin chains was performed in stroma-free hemolysates prepared from peripheral blood and bone marrow cells of 11 patients with beta O-thalassemia and 2 patients with sickle cell anemia. A small radioactivity peak, slightly preceding the beta-chain and more prominent in bone marrow cells, was often observed. This peak, which represents synthesis of non-globin proteins, did not exceed 5% of the radioactivity incorporated in the alpha-chain. It is concluded that contamination of the beta-chain with non-globin proteins undoubtedly occurs, but its extent is insufficient to explain the different synthetic ratios which have been repeatedly observed in peripheral blood and in bone marrow cells of patients with heterozygous beta-thalassemia.