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Types Of Blood Groups That Humans Have A, B, Ab, And O

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There are four major types of blood groups that humans have: A, B, AB, and O. An individual’s blood type is determined by the type of antigens that are present in your blood cells; antigens are proteins and cause an immune response on the blood cells. The Rh antigen was discovered in 1940 by Karl Landsteiner and Alexander Weiner with the discovery of the cause of severe jaundice and fetal demise. The Rh antigen was named after rhesus monkeys, because they were the first used in the research of this antigen. The Rh blood group is the most important after the ABO blood group. “By the Mayo Clinic Staff, Rhesus (Rh) factor is an inherited protein found on the surface of red blood cells. If your blood has the protein, you 're Rh positive. If your blood lacks the protein, you 're Rh negative” (Mayo Clinic). Only fifteen percent of the population is Rh negative and out of the thirty five present human blood groups, it is one of the most complex systems. “The complexity of the Rh blood group antigens begins with the highly polymorphic genes that encode them” (Dean). There are two genes that have been closely linked together, RHD and RHCE, now over fifty antigens have been discovered, and research has showed that they can cause serious complications in the fetus of women who are Rh antigen negative. The most common antigens for Rh is D, C, E, c, and e. We have been able to have a better understanding of the Rh antigen because of the cloning of genes, and today we now know that the

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