February 22, 2013 at 10:29 am
Published by Stanford Blood Center
By Billie Rubin, reporting from the labs of Stanford Blood Center
The antigens on the surface of red blood cells can be made out of proteins, carbohydrates, glycoproteins or glycolipids. The A and B antigens that we commonly hear about belong to the ABO system. You can think of the systems as family members determined by your genes.
July 13, 2012 at 10:50 am
Published by Stanford Blood Center
By Billie Rubin, Hemoglobin's Catabolic Cousin, reporting from the labs of Stanford Blood Center
Red blood cell (RBC) antigens have to be good for something - nature doesn't make useless things for no reason. We have similar ABO antigens to some on bacteria, pollen, grains, etc., and these may be involved in stimulating the production of our natural anti-A and anti-B antigens.
