HBE1 and thalassemia: Thalassemia comprises several clinically relevant subtypes including β-thalassemia (β0 and β+), α-thalassemia (α0 and α+), hemoglobin H disease (HbH), and hemoglobin E (HbE) and reliable classification is crucial for genetic counseling, family planning, and clinical management, especially among carrier couples [31,32,33,34].