Definition
The most important histocompatibility and blood group antigen system, consisting of two main antigens and four main phenotypes inherited in a Mendelian fashion.
Characteristics
The ABO blood group system was discovered by Karl Landsteiner in 1901. By mixing the separated sera with suspensions of red cells obtained from the blood of different individuals, four patterns of agglutination were obtained. These patterns subdivide the population into four main blood groups (with approximate European Caucasian frequencies in parentheses): O (46.5 %); A (42 %); B (8.5 %); and AB (3 %). The frequency of the four ABO groups varies in different populations: native Americans are almost exclusively group O, while Asians have a proportionately higher incidence of group B. There are two antigens, A and B, though A is subdivided into A1 and A2. The O phenotype is the absence of A and B (Table 1).
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References
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Daniels, G., Contreras, M. (2016). ABO Blood Group System. In: Vohr, HW. (eds) Encyclopedia of Immunotoxicology. Springer, Berlin, Heidelberg. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-642-54596-2_3
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DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-642-54596-2_3
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