Children's Hospital Los Angeles investigator receives $100,000 grant from NFL Charities

"Catastrophic muscle breakdown in African American men with sickle cell trait is the leading cause of death in NCAA football players in the last decade," said John Wood, MD, PhD, researcher at The Saban Research Institute of Children's Hospital Los Angeles and associate professor at the Keck School of Medicine at the University of Southern California.

Dr. Wood, director of Cardiovascular Magnetic Resonance Imaging for the Heart Institute at Children's Hospital, has received a $100,000 grant from NFL Charities for sports-related medical research on the sickle cell trait in athletes.

Red blood cells contain a protein called hemoglobin that carries oxygen from the lungs to the rest of the body. Normally, the red cell is disc-shaped. Sickle cell disease is caused by abnormal hemoglobin, called hemoglobin S. Hemoglobin S causes the red cell to be distorted after it delivers oxygen. Instead of the normal disc shape, the cell is shaped like a crescent or sickle. These abnormally shaped cells become stiff, fragile, and tend to clog small blood vessels in exercising muscle.

Sickle cell disease requires two abnormal genes, one from each parent. Someone who inherits the abnormal hemoglobin S gene from one parent and the normal hemoglobin gene from the other parent has sickle cell trait (SCT). This condition occurs in 8 percent of African Americans and is rarely associated with clinical disease. However, under conditions of extreme heat and exertion, like those associated with military training and professional sports, hemoglobin may sickle in individuals with SCT resulting in catastrophic organ damage and death.

The reasons why some individuals with SCT are vulnerable to these complications are unknown. Dr. Wood proposes to probe energy production mechanisms in SCT red blood cells to determine whether there are key shortages of important building blocks. In particular, he would like to determine whether the amino acid glutamine improves red cell chemical energy stores and their flexibility. If glutamine supplementation benefits red cell physiology in SCT athletes, it would represent an easy and safe therapy that could be incorporated into athletic training regimens.

"We are proud to support sports-related medical research proposals through NFL Charities Medical Research Grants," said NFL Commissioner Roger Goodell, President of the NFL Charities Board. "These grants will help to address risk factors for football players and all athletes, and make the game safer."

Provided by Children's Hospital Los Angeles