ABSTRACT
The aboriginal populations of the New World have very few abnormal hemoglobins and very little glucose-6-phosphate dehydrogenase (G6PD) deficiency. The pre-Columbian existence in the New World of many diseases-including malaria-is among the most hotly debated questions in anthropology, parasitology, and medical science. In North America the Alaskan Indians and Eskimos and the northern Plains Indians do not have any abnormal hemoglobins in appreciable frequencies, although a hemoglobin D has been found among the latter. In Central America the highest frequencies of hemoglobin S are found among the Black Carib and in some mixed villages in Panama. South America is similar to Central America in its hemoglobin and G6PD deficiency frequencies. The Negroes of Rio Grande do Sul show a rather low hemoglobin C frequency, particularly when compared to other American Negro populations and when considered in conjunction with their hemoglobin S frequency.
