It’s a 50-year-old mystery. In England, researchers from NHS Blood and Transplant at the NHSBT International Blood Group Reference Laboratory and the University of Bristol have identified a new blood group system, called MAL, which is the 47th ever discovered. With these results, it will now be possible to identify and treat the rare patients without this blood group. These findings were published in the scientific journal Blood.
The AnWj antigen was discovered in 1972, but its genetic background remained unknown until now. With this discovery, scientists have been able to identify the genetic background of the AnWj blood group antigen.The two most well-known blood group systems are ABO and Rh, but blood is more complex and matching other groups can save lives.“, recalls the press release published by the MedicalXpress website. Specifically, if AnWj-negative people receive AnWj-positive blood, they could have a transfusion reaction. With this discovery, it will therefore be possible to treat more patients who will be able to benefit from a new test. This advance will also allow research into blood developers for this rare blood group.
The culmination of a long work
“The genetic background of AnWj has been a mystery for over 50 years, and it is a mystery that I have personally been trying to solve for almost 20 years of my career. This is a huge achievement and the culmination of a long team effort to finally establish this new blood group system and be able to offer the best care to rare but important patients.“, says Louise Tilley, Principal Investigator in the IBGRL Red Blood Cell Reference Service at NHS Blood and Transplant.
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