Hb Poitiers [alpha 45(CE3)His-->Asp]: a new hemoglobin variant with a two-fold increase in oxygen affinity

Hb Poitiers or alpha 45(CE3)His-->Asp was found in a 9-year-old French Caucasian boy. The structural modification concerns a heme contact and is responsible for an increased oxygen affinity and a faster than normal rate of autooxidation.