“OMICs” reveal the molecular basis of a rare blood group

Blood groups are defined by membrane proteins that are either single-pass, multi-pass, or glycosylphosphatidylinositol-linked proteins. The antigens defining the blood groups can be either the proteins themselves or the complexes of sugars that decorate these membrane proteins. For antigens that are present at high frequency on red blood cells, transfusion incompatibility problems, due to the absence of undefined blood group antigens, may cause...