Mia Patrice D.

Dela Vega 2008 65458 Blood Banking Assignment The Bombay blood group

PH 156 Clinical Laboratory Analyis

The Bombay blood group is a rare blood group that does not have the H antigen. Since the H antigen is the building block for the A and B antigens, individuals with the Bombay blood group, likewise known as the Bombay phenotype (hh or Oh), also do not possess the A and B antigens. Therefore, these individuals produce all anti-H, anti-A and anti-B antibodies. They can only receive blood from individuals with the same phenotype. In standard blood typing they will appear to have the O blood type but transfusion with blood type O will trigger a severe immune reaction. The antigen was discovered in Bombay, India when an unusual case presented with immune reactions against all ABO groups. The Bombay phenotype occurs in 1 out of 250,000 people but it occurs more frequently in some parts of India, as frequent as 1 in 7,600. The Bombay phenotype is believed to occur only in people of Eastern Indian descent. The Australia antigen The Australia antigen is the surface antigen of the Hepatitis B virus, HBsAg. It is present in acute and chronic Hepatitis B infection. The Australia antigen was discovered by Dr. Baruch Samuel Blumberg in the 1960s after noting an unusual reaction when the blood of an Australian Aborigine was added to the serum of patients with hemophilia or leukemia. The antigen was linked to the Hepatitis B virus when Blumberg identified the antigen in a retest done on a child with Down syndrome, who previously did not have the antigen and who later developed symptoms of hepatitis. It was Alfred Prince who discovered that the antigen is part of the Hepatitis B virus. Why is plasma-free filtrate given to patients with IgA deficiencies? Individuals with IgA deficiency may develop anti-IgA antibodies due to probable sensitization by blood transfusion, pregnancy and others. When donated with blood containing IgA these individuals may develop an anaphylactic reaction because of the reaction of IgA antibodies present in the patients serum with the IgA in the donors blood. These reactions can be fatal. Therefore, plasma, which contains IgA, is first removed from blood before transfusion to an IgA-deficient individual. ABO blood group antigens There are 3 antigens present in the ABO blood group H antigen, A antigen and B antigen. These antigens are glycoproteins or glycolipids with their oligosaccharide chain exposed at the red blood cell surface. The sequence of oligosaccharides determines the type of antigen.

1. H antigen. The H antigen is the building block of the A and B antigens. The oligosaccharide chain consists of -D-galactose, -D-N-acetylglucosamine, -D-galactose, and 2-linked, L-fucose. The H antigen is the present in the O blood group. In fact the H antigen is present in all blood groups as the underlying precursor to the A and B antigens, but when a sugar moiety is added to the oligosaccharide chain, the antigen is identified as either A or B antigen. Some people do not have the H antigen. Fucose is not added to the oligosaccharide chain. They are those with the Bombay phenotype as dicussed earlier. 2. A antigen. The first four sugar moieties in the A antigen is similar to the H antigen. The difference is N-acetylgalactosamine is added to the chain and linked to the second galactose. The A antigen determines the A blood group. 3. B antigen. The B antigen is similar to the A antigen except that the added sugar moiety is another galactose. Therefore 3 molecules of galactose is present in the B antigen. The B antigen is present in the B blood group. In the AB blood group both A and B antigens are present. Genes encoding for the ABO blood group antigens The H antigen is encoded by a genetic locus, the H locus, located in chromosome 19, while the ABO antigens are encoded by the ABO locus located in chromosome 9. The H locus encodes the enzyme fucosyltransferase that produces the H antigen. The ABO locus encodes for 2 kinds of enzymes depending on the allele. The ABO locus has 3 alleles A, B and O. 1. A allele. In case of the A allele an enzyme, glycosyltransferase, is encoded, which adds the N-acetylgalactosamine moiety to the D-galactose of the H antigen, producing the A antigen. 2. B allele. The B allele encodes another glycosyltransferase that bonds the -D-galactose to the D-galactose of the H antigen, thereby producing the B antigen. 3. O allele. In the O allele there is a deletion of one nucleotide resulting in a frameshift, causing the translation to stop prematurely and the loss of enzymatic activity. Therefore no sugar molecule is added to the H antigen oligosaccharide chain.

References ABO blood group system. (2011, September 13). Retrieved September 14, 2011, from Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/ABO_blood_group_system#ABO_antigens Blood Group Antigens. (n.d.). Retrieved September 14, 2011, from Web Books Publishing: http://www.web-books.com/MoBio/Free/Ch1B5.htm Dean, L. (2005). The ABO blood groups - Blood Groups and Red Cell Antigens. Retrieved September 14, 2011, from National Center for Biotechnology Information Bookshelf: http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/books/NBK2267/ Dean, L. (2005). The Hh blood group - Blood Groups and Red Cell Antigen. Retrieved September 13, 2011, from National Center for Biotechnology Information Bookshelf: http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/books/NBK2268/ Ellis, J. (n.d.). What is the Australia antigen? Retrieved September 14, 2011, from wiseGEEK: http://www.wisegeek.com/what-is-the-australia-antigen.htm HBsAg. (2011, June 2). Retrieved September 14, 2011, from Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/HBsAg hh antigen system. (2011, July 24). Retrieved September 13, 2011, from Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Hh_antigen_system Incidence -- IgA deficiency. (n.d.). Retrieved September 14, 2011, from Department of Pathology University of Pittsburgh School of Medicine: http://path.upmc.edu/cases/case280/inc.html Kimball, J. W. (2010, December 29). Blood Groups. Retrieved September 14, 2011, from Kimball's Biology Pages: http://users.rcn.com/jkimball.ma.ultranet/BiologyPages/B/BloodGroups.html Prater, A. M. (2008, February 27). Understanding the Bombay blood group. Retrieved September 13, 2011, from Helium: http://www.helium.com/items/891957-understanding-the-bombay-bloodgroup