Vita gazette – New blood group discovered called ER. In a medical breakthrough, scientists discovered a rare new blood group system that helped them solve a long-standing mystery in blood grouping in the process. Thanks to this invention will help prevent blood diseases.

A new blood sub-group has been identified, it is called Er. This was revealed by a study by the English National Health Service Blood and Transplant (Nhsbt) published in the journal Blood. The four major blood groups known are A, B, 0 and AB. But there are several ways to group red blood cells based on differences in the sugars or proteins that line their surface, the antigens.

According to the study published in the journal Blood, there are five Er antigens in this group. The investigation was initiated by the deaths of two newborns that had encouraged scientists to research a rare blood group first identified in humans 40 years ago. The discovery more specifically concerns a specific subgroup of Er that now opens new doors to the prevention of similar tragedies in the near future.

When a blood cell is in the presence of an antigen that our body has not classified as ours, our immune system is activated, sending antibodies to signal the destruction of the cells that contain the suspect antigen. In rare cases, during pregnancy, it can happen that the tissues of the fetus are recognized as foreign and therefore attacked. The generated antibodies pass through the placenta, leading to hemolytic disease in the unborn child. Today, several methods are being implemented to prevent or treat hemolytic disease in newborns, but the sporadic manifestation of these rare antibodies has made medical understanding elusive until now.

A team of researchers led by serologist Nicole Thornton of the UK’s National Health Service Blood and Transplant (NHSBT) analyzed the blood of 13 patients for suspected antigens. They identified five variations in the Er antigens: the known variants Era, Erb, Er3 and two new ones Er4 and Er5. By sequencing the patients’ genetic codes, the crew and team were able to pinpoint the gene that codes for cell surface proteins. Surprisingly, it was a gene already familiar to medical science: PIEZO1. The gene is already associated with several known diseases. PIEZO1 is needed to add Er antigen to the cell surface. This study highlights the antigenic potential of even very poorly expressed proteins and their relevance for transfusion medicine.