Latest investigations into the influence of blood group on Covid-19

A number of studies look at the various factors involved in the occurrence of symptoms and the extent to which these affect the course of Covid-19.

And there are many studies^[1-4] around the world examining criteria that influence Covid-19 in some way. Researchers are also concerned, for example, with the influence of our blood group on the course or intensity of this disease. A group of researchers from Graz Medical University retrospectively developed a blood image comparison study on 399 SARS-CoV-2 positively-tested patients who were in inpatient treatment as a result of a Covid-19 disease^[1]. Comparative data were taken from blood donors to the blood donor service. Researchers at the Medical University of Vienna have specifically found that some blood groups among Covid-19 patients were more common than would be expected according to the blood group distribution in the healthy population^[1].

An important finding led to the statement that people with blood group O have a statistically significantly lower probability of developing Covid-19 than people with other ABO phenotypes. In contrast, blood group AB was represented significantly more frequently among infected and ill people than in the control group, which consisted of healthy blood donors^[1].

It was also found, for example, that the severity of the Covid-19 disease is not affected by the AB0 blood group. This means that people with blood group O can also become just as ill as people with other blood groups. Consequently, the result of the blood group determination does not directly represent an indicator for the course of Covid-19 diseases. But clearly, the blood group can be used as a factor in how likely or unlikely someone is to develop SARS-CoV-2^[1].

What is the correlation between Covid-19 and human blood group?

Our red blood cells are surrounded by a membrane of many different carbohydrates (sugars) and proteins, which determines the surface structure of the red blood cells. These so-called antigens are not only crucial for differentiating between blood groups but are also important for the detection of microorganisms. The A and B antigens can, for example, be found in tissues of the respiratory organs and digestive tract. ”Pathogens such as bacteria or viruses can selectively bind to blood group structures and influence the colonization of the affected tissue or its inclusion in the cells," explains principal investigator Eva Maria Matzhold, a molecular biologist at the University Clinic for Blood Group Serology and Transfusion Medicine at the Medical University of Graz^[1].

In order to find further new approaches and possibilities for the treatment of patients, the focus of further research is specifically on the mechanism involved here^[1].

Greiner Bio-One provides a variety of VACUETTE^® blood collection tubes for the determination of blood groups.

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References:

Lab Worldwide: Does my blood reveal the risk of disease with corona?

JC Silva-Filho, CG Faria de Melo; J Lima de Oliveira: The influence of ABO blood groups on COVID-19 susceptibility and severity: A molecular hypothesis based on carbohydrate-carbohydrate interactions. Med Hypotheses 2020 Nov. 144: 110155.

Mike Bogetofte Barnkob, et al. Reduced prevalence of SARS-CoV-2 infection in ABO blood group O. Blood Adv 2020; 4 (20): 4990–4993

Ryan L. Hoiland, et al. The association of ABO blood group with indices of disease severity and multiorgan dysfunction in COVID-19. Blood Adv 2020; 4 (20): 4981–4989