Horoscope poll:)! Whats your blood type? I am O negative .... Jealous:)?
Why would I be jealous of a zero when I am AB negative - the rarest and the universal one. Only 0.45% of human population have my blood. So yeah, that makes me sooo special *That moment when people are too stupid to get your sarcasm and you actually have to explain to the Einstein you were being sarcastic. Lovely -_- Sure, I am being silly. Whatever.
Blood type antigens are rare in my blood type?
The other indications are other antigen groups, the E and C being within the Rh group, K is for a Kell antigen, Fy is the Duffy group, and the others, S, and Jk groups are just referred to by the letters. The findings have no meaning for your health, or your future needs for transfusion, just will help them screen early, if the person needing the transfusion (that may receive your blood) has an antibody against any of these. None of these is a rare finding.
What is the Duffy blood group?
The Duffy blood group system is one of the 36 discovered human blood group systems. It contains 2 antigens: Duffy a (abbreviation Fy(a)) and Duffy b (Fy(b+)). Analogous to the ABO blood group system, you can be positive for both antigens, one of the two, or negative for both antigens. Like with all blood group antigens, if you are Fy a or b negative, you can form antibodies when you are transfused with blood that it's Fy a or b positive. These antibodies can cause severe transfusion reactions if ignored.Interestingly, in Blacks, Fy a and b negative (Fy(a-b-)) is prevalent. This is extremely rare in Caucasians and Asians. Apparantly, people with the Fy(a-b-) phenotype are not susceptible to some forms of malaria.[1] This initially rare mutation therefore proved to be a huge survival benefit in the African population and spread rapidly. It is a very clear and easy to understand example of “recent” evolution in humans.Footnotes[1] The Resistance Factor to Plasmodium vivax in Blacks — The Duffy-Blood-Group Genotype, FyFy | NEJM
What is the Duffy antigen?
This is a precis from the Wikipedia.Duffy antigen receptor for chemokine (DARC)Present on red blood cells, certain epithelial cells, purkinjie cells, liver and spleen cells.Binds to chemokines and mediates inflammationServes as scavenger to remove excess chemokine activityPhenotypes : FyA and FyB.Serves as receptor for Plasmodium vivax and other human malarial parasites. FyA is the epitope for malarial parasites.Africans are intrinsically resistant to malarial parasites as they are duffy antigen negativeDuffy antigen has also been reported to have connection with HIV, cancer, prostate cancer, asthma etc..The presence/ absence of duffy antigen and the resistance against certain diseases still pose contradictory statements and needs to be explored more.