Nitric oxide, a substance that helps blood vessels dilate, is up to two times more available in women than men with the genetic condition, sickle cell anemia.This is the reason why men suffer more from sickle cell anaemia.
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Sickle cell anemia is an inherited blood disorder, in which normally round red blood cells become misshaped like sickles and clog vessels. These blockages cause painful episodes known as sickle cell crises.
The body makes NO and uses it to dilate blood vessels, so blood can flow through them easily. When the body attempts to repair injured areas of the blood vessels - such as after blood flow is cut off in a heart attack or sickle cell crisis - NO prevents the inflammatory white cells of that repair process from sticking to the cells that line the arteries. NO also reduces clotting by keeping the platelets in the blood from sticking together. Finally, NO protects vessels by knocking out a substance called superoxide that generates highly destructive particles, "free radicals," that can damage vessels,