Austin Siu Periods 7&8 Supplemental Reading
“Survival of the Sickest” by Dr. Sharon Moalem
1) What prompted the author’s interest in biology? The author’s grandfather was a strong, loving man that loved bleeding. He loved donating blood because it made him feel great both emotionally and physically. The reason behind his physical please from donating blood was because he was diagnosed with hemochromatosis or iron overload disease. Her father passed away early but she was still motivated to find a cure to hemochromatosis for others with the disease.
2) What are the consequences of hemochromatosis if it’s left untreated? Hemochromatosis caused the body’s cells to uptake all available iron. This eventually leads to a hazardous …show more content…
A lot of iron is loss in the excess blood release. Low iron levels is known as anemia, and some symptoms of anemia are fatigue, shortness of breath, and even heart failure.
4) What are chelators and where are they found? Chelators are “iron locking proteins”. When there is excess iron floating around, they trap the iron and inactivate them. Overall, this would prevent damage to organs. Chelators are commonly found near openings such as in salvia and mucus. There are high concentrations of chelators in egg whites to protect the egg yolk from substances that protrude the egg shell.
5) Which members of the population were mostly susceptible to the plaque? Why? Healthy middle-aged men were most susceptible to the plaque. Healthy men usually had the highest amount of iron in their diet and in their bodies. The bubonic plague was caused by the bacteria “yersinia pestis” and bacteria are able to multiply in the presence of iron. Women usually had low to normal amount of iron due to menstruation. Jewish people fasted during the time of the bubonic plague which means they consumed less iron and reduced the chances of them from experiencing the symptoms of the