About HBB
The alpha (HBA) and beta (HBB) loci determine the structure of the 2 types of polypeptide chains in adult hemoglobin, Hb A. The normal adult hemoglobin tetramer consists of two alpha chains and two beta chains. Mutant beta globin causes sickle cell anemia. Absence of beta chain causes beta-zero-thalassemia. Reduced amounts of detectable beta globin causes beta-plus-thalassemia. The order of the genes in the beta-globin cluster is 5'-epsilon -- gamma-G -- gamma-A -- delta -- beta--3'. [provided by RefSeq, Jul 2008]

About FITC
Fluorescein isothiocyanate (FITC) has an excitation peak at 495 nm and an emission peak at 519 nm. The name FITC is a misnomer in that the isothiocyanate is a reactive form of this dye. Once FITC is conjugated to an antibody, it is simply Fluorescein conjugated. FITC is one of the most widely used dyes for fluorescent applications, therefore most instruments come standard with a 488 nm laser and FITC filter set up. FITC is commonly conjugated to secondary antibodies and used in applications such as flow cytometry, immunocytochemistry, and immunohistochemistry. FITC is relatively dim, sensitive to photobleaching and it is susceptible to changes is pH. There are better performing alternatives to FITC, like Vio®Bright 515, Alexa Fluor™ 488, iFluor® 488, CF®488A and DY-488. FITC is a long-time generic dye with no sole manufacturer or trademark.