Porphyria

Porphyria
(Poor-FEAR-ee-ah)
Porphyria is a rare hereditary medical condition in which a person's body does not produce heme, the main component in hemoglobin. Those who suffer with this disease have a sensitivity to sunlight, allergic reactions to GARLIC, excessive HAIR growth, scars that easily break back open and never heal properly, and a tightening of the skin around the gums and lips that gives the illusion of the incisor teeth being larger than normal. These symptoms certainly add up to what many people consider being textbook vampiric traits. However, there are no vampires, mythologically speaking, that fit this profile. People who claim to suffer from porphyria and claim that their craving to drink blood stems from the disease are incorrect. Although the craving may be real, there is absolutely no medical evidence to support the idea that porphyria sufferers crave blood, human or otherwise.
Source: Bunson, Encyclopedia of Vampires, 210; Evans, Porphyria; Ramsland, Science of Vampire, 91

Encyclopedia of vampire mythology . 2014.

Игры ⚽ Поможем написать курсовую

Look at other dictionaries:

  • porphyria — porphyria. См. порфирии. (Источник: «Англо русский толковый словарь генетических терминов». Арефьев В.А., Лисовенко Л.А., Москва: Изд во ВНИРО, 1995 г.) …   Молекулярная биология и генетика. Толковый словарь.

  • porphyria — 1923, from porphyrin (1910), from Ger. porphyrin, chemical name, from Gk. porphyros “purple” (see PURPLE (Cf. purple)) + IN (Cf. in) (2). Some of the compounds are purple …   Etymology dictionary

  • porphyria — [pôr fir′ē ə] n. [ModL < PORPHYRIN + IA] an inherited disorder of pigment metabolism with excretion of porphyrins in the urine and dangerous sensitivity to sunlight …   English World dictionary

  • Porphyria — This article is about the medical condition. For other uses, see Porphyry (disambiguation). Porphyria Classification and external resources ICD 10 E80.0 E80.2 …   Wikipedia

  • porphyria — /pawr fear ee euh, fuy ree euh/, n. Pathol. a defect of blood pigment metabolism in which porphyrins are produced in excess, are present in the blood, and are found in the urine. Also called hematoporphyria. [1920 25; PORPHYR(IN) + IA] * * * ▪… …   Universalium

  • Porphyria — Any of a group of inherited diseases characterized by skin sensitivity to sunlight and/or by intermittent acute attacks of abdominal and nerve pain. The porphyrias are caused by enzyme defects that trigger the overproduction of porphyrins by the… …   Medical dictionary

  • porphyria — n. one of a group of rare disorders due to inborn errors of metabolism in which there are deficiencies in the enzymes involved in the biosynthesis of haem. The accumulation of the enzyme s substrate gives rise to symptoms of the disorder. The… …   The new mediacal dictionary

  • porphyria — n. any of a group of genetic disorders associated with abnormal metabolism of various pigments. Etymology: mod.L f. porphyrin purple substance excreted by porphyria patients f. Gk porphura purple …   Useful english dictionary

  • Porphyria's Lover — is the last poem by Robert Browning that was first published as Porphyria in the January 1841 issue of Monthly Repository . Browning later republished it in Dramatic Lyrics (1842) paired with Johannes Agricola in Meditation under the title… …   Wikipedia

  • Porphyria's Lover — L Amant de Porphyria Robert Browning, l auteur de Porphyria s Lover. Porphyria s Lover (L Amant de Porphyria) est un poème de Robert Browning d abord publié sous le titre de Porphyria en janvier 1836 par le Monthly Repository, puis au sein des… …   Wikipédia en Français

Share the article and excerpts

Direct link
Do a right-click on the link above
and select “Copy Link”