October 2013
Giancarlo Maria Liumbruno and Massimo Franchini
Introduction
The antigens of the ABO blood group system (A, B and H determinants, respectively) are complex carbohydrate molecules on the extracellular surface of red blood cell membranes. However, along with their expression on red blood cells, ABO antigens are also highly expressed on the surface of a variety of human cells and tissues, including the epithelium, sensory neurons, platelets, and the vascular endothelium. Thus, the clinical significance of the ABO blood group system extends beyond transfusion medicine and several reports have suggested an important involvement in the development of cardiovascular, oncological and other diseases.
Current knowledge on the association between the ABO blood group system and various human diseases are summarised in this narrative review.
Conclusions
Beside its role in immunohaematology, there is accumulating evidence that the ABO blood group also plays a key role in various human diseases such as cardiovascular, neoplastic and infectious disorders. In the near future, probably many of the statistical associations observed between ABO and diseases will be reassessed by GWAS. These studies have already confirmed some of the relations detected by targeted researches carried out long before the current era of genomics, such as those with VTE, CHD, and pancreatic cancer.
