What is the probability of a couple, both carriers of sickle cell anemia, having four unaffected children and one affected child?

To determine the probability of a couple, both of whom are carriers of sickle cell anemia, having four unaffected children and one affected child, it's essential to understand the genetics involved.

Sickle cell anemia is an autosomal recessive disorder, which means that the condition is expressed in individuals who have two copies of the sickle cell allele (let's denote the normal allele as "A" and the sickle cell allele as "a"). Carriers have one normal allele and one sickle cell allele (genotype Aa).

When two carriers (Aa) have children, their offspring can inherit one of the following genotypic combinations:

• AA (normal)

• Aa (normal, but carrier)

• aa (affected with sickle cell anemia)

The probability distribution for each child born to two carrier parents can be detailed as follows:

• 1/4 chance of being AA (normal)

• 1/2 chance of being Aa (carrier)

• 1/4 chance of being aa (affected)

When considering a specific scenario where we want four unaffected children (which includes both AA and Aa) and one affected child (aa), we can analyze the situation using probability.

First, we calculate the probabilities for the desired outcomes for