There are 4 human blood groups. It should be noted that their frequency of occurrence varies. Determination of its type is carried out quite often (before various operations, before childbirth, a person liable for military service, a newborn, and so on). It is very important to accurately determine the type and Rh factor during blood transfusion and organ transplantation.
What is the rarest blood type in humans? How long ago did it appear and how was it formed? What are the rules for transfusion of a rare form of biomaterial and what is the “Bombay Phenomenon”? You will learn about this and much more in our article.
Types of blood groups and Rh factor: statistics
In people from different countries of the world, the first 2 blood types are more often determined, but the remaining 2 are less common. Percentage of these indicators:
- About 45% of the world's population has group I (0). It has existed longer than the others and is the most common;
- Approximately 35% of people have II (A);
- 15% of people with III (B) group. It, like II, appeared under the influence of external (for example, climate change) and internal (severe infections) environmental factors on humans;
- About 5% of humanity has the rare IV (AB) blood form. This is the rarest blood in the world.
In addition to the group, this biomaterial also differs in the Rh factor. It can be positive (Rh+) or negative (Rh-).
A positive Rh factor is much more common (about 80%) than a negative one (about 20%).
The least common combination is IV (Rh-). People with this combination range from 0.5 to 1%.
The theory of the origin of the rarest fourth group
If the oldest is I, then the youngest is the rarest group - IV. II and III arose when the human body was exposed to various unfavorable factors. Thus, the body adapted to changing living conditions. To understand how the IV form of blood arose, it is necessary to consider the entire path of formation, starting with I.
How the biomaterial was divided into types:
- (I) is the blood of a primitive man-hunter, a man-predator. It was determined by the predominance of meat in the diet;
- (II) – the blood of the farmer. Its occurrence is associated with human migration in search of food. The diet is changing, plant foods predominate on the menu. Geographically, it originated in Asia;
- (III) – the blood of a nomadic pastoralist. A person finds himself in harsh external conditions, his nutrition becomes meager (mainly dairy products). Holders of such blood fluid have historically had strong immunity;
- (IV) appeared less than 1000 years ago. Its occurrence is not associated with external influences. It arose relatively recently, when population migration from Asia to Europe and back began. The biomaterial of this group arose as a result of the formation of mixed families between Europeans and Asians. This type combines the features of forms II and III. This is now the rarest form.
There are 2 more theories about the origin of the rarest type of blood:
- Its occurrence under the influence of dangerous, deadly viruses on humans;
- Changes and complexity of food (different methods of cooking) contributed to the production of antigens A and B.
AB inheritance occurs from carrier parents:
- If both parents have group AB, then the probability of inheritance is no higher than 50%;
- If only 1 parent has form IV, then the probability of inheritance does not exceed 25%.
Rare blood transfusion rules
Hemotransfusion is a blood transfusion. This manipulation is carried out to compensate for massive blood loss. Donor is the person from whom the material for transfusion is taken. Recipient is the person receiving the blood transfusion. How is transfusion carried out in patients with form IV?
In order to perform a blood transfusion without life-threatening consequences, it is necessary to accurately determine not only the group affiliation, but also the Rh factor.
During a transfusion, the blood of the donor and recipient must match in all respects. If this condition is not met, then sedimentation and destruction of red blood cells will occur. A person may die from acute respiratory failure.
Features of blood transfusion for a recipient with type IV biomaterial
If it is necessary to perform a blood transfusion for a person with the AB form, then the Rh factor must be determined. It is this sign that is decisive in this situation.
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People with group IV are called universal recipients. That is, they can accept any type of blood. During blood transfusion, special attention should be paid to the Rh factor:
- If a patient with form IV is Rh negative, then blood from any of the four groups can be transfused. But the Rh factor must match, that is, be negative;
- If Rh is positive, then you can transfuse any of the four types of blood fluid with any Rh (both positive and negative).
To whom can blood of the fourth type be transfused?
A person with blood group IV can only be a donor for recipients with the same form. However, in this case there are certain conditions that must be observed:
It should be noted that currently, for blood transfusions, they try to use only the donor and recipient group of the same name, with the same Rh.
Bombay phenomenon
Officially there are 4 blood groups. However, in 1952 in India, in the city of Bombay (now Mumbai), the 5th species was discovered. In this case, agglutinogens (substances located on the membranes of red blood cells) that are not characteristic of the type of parental biomaterial are determined in the biomaterial. This discovery was called the Bombay Phenomenon.
The Bombay phenomenon can manifest itself in the following cases:
- The parents have group I, and the children have group III;
- For parents - I and III, and for children - II or IV.
The “Bombay phenomenon” is extremely rare, occurring in 1 case per 250,000 people, which is about 0.0001%. However, in India this phenomenon is slightly more common, 1 case in 8000 people, about 0.001%.
It should also be noted that people with this phenomenon may have difficulties with blood transfusion. The fact is that in this case a donor with exactly the same rare and unusual blood is required.
To date, many features of the body’s activity have not yet been fully studied by scientists. Some blood characteristics also remain a mystery. In modern medicine, it is customary to distinguish the blood of different people by group, as well as by Rh factor. In any laboratory, employees can determine these human characteristics, which are then used by doctors when it is necessary to carry out various medical procedures (mainly blood transfusions). Today we are talking about what is the rarest blood in the world and the Rh factor of human blood.
What is Rh factor and blood group?
Today, a system known as AB0 is used to evaluate blood group; it was proposed by the scientist Landsteiner, who lived at the beginning of the last century. Wherein:
0 – considered the first blood group;
A – second blood group;
B – third blood group;
AB – fourth blood group.
In addition to blood group, doctors distinguish another difference - the Rh factor. Such a particle is essentially an antigen present on the surface of red blood cells in approximately 85% of people and, accordingly, readers of Popular About Health. Accordingly, people who have this antigen are called Rh-positive, and those who do not have it are called Rh-negative.
The rarest human blood type in the world
The fourth group with a negative Rh factor is considered the rarest in humans. The fourth positive blood group is found a little more often: even more often than the third negative, second negative and first negative.
Scientists claim that the fourth blood group as a whole is quite mysterious and, most likely, the youngest - it appeared in people not so long ago as a result of the fusion of two other blood types A and B.
There is a theory that people with this blood type have a fairly flexible immune system. Also, some scientists are confident that the emergence of the fourth blood group is a consequence of the practice of mixed marriages. And this group is characterized by high biological complexity. Sometimes its features are similar to the second blood group, sometimes to the third. But much more often, this blood type is a kind of combination of both groups A and B.
Some scientists are confident that the fourth blood group in the world arose about a thousand years ago, due to the mixing of the Mongoloid race and Indo-Europeans.
Today, 5% of the world's population can be considered carriers of the fourth positive blood group, and the fourth negative blood group is observed only in 0.4%.
The rarest Rh factor in the world in blood
So, as we already understood, the most rare is the absence of the Rh factor, in other words, a negative Rh factor. This feature is typical for only 15% of the planet's population. And to date, not a single scientist can explain why a small number of people do not have antigen on their red blood cells.
In most cases, the rare negative Rh factor does not affect the quality of life at all. But sometimes such a criterion is very important, for example, during blood transfusion and donation, as well as during pregnancy. After all, if the mother is Rh-negative and the fetus is Rh-positive, a so-called Rh conflict arises, which requires the use of a number of medications to maintain the pregnancy.
Bombay blood
Bombay blood or Bombay phenomenon is an amazing name for a new blood group, which, according to scientists, was discovered in the middle of the last century in India.
Bombay blood does not have antigens A or B (which are characteristic of the second - A, third - B, or fourth blood group - AB). It would seem that in such a situation, it is identical to the first blood group - Oh, but this is not so. Bombay blood does not contain the H antigen, which is present in the first blood group. Research shows that this phenomenon occurs in approximately 0.01% of Indian residents. Bombay blood does not cause any problems to its owner, except that only the same blood can be used for blood transfusion. At the same time, Bombay blood is surprisingly suitable for donation - it is compatible with all four blood groups.
Thus, we can conclude that the rarest blood group is still the fourth negative. Bombay blood is not yet recognized as the rarest, since it is a phenomenon (only in a given area and in too few people) and cannot be used to obtain statistical data.
Additional Information
Some experts are confident that a particular person’s blood type has a direct impact: on his health, taste preferences and even character. Thus, according to such scientists, owners of the fourth negative blood group have strong immunity, but at the same time suffer from a weak digestive system. They quite often encounter viral infections that can penetrate the body through the gastrointestinal tract.
People with the fourth negative blood group are distinguished by their strong character, but at the same time they are touchy and vulnerable. Quite often such individuals seem strange. At school and university they are attracted to various intellectual games and all kinds of activities. They are also distinguished by their curiosity.
Scientists also suggest that people with blood type IV are especially prone to developing anemia. They need to adhere to a diet to prevent excess weight gain.
In fact, the rare Rhesus and the rarest blood groups do not in any way affect a person’s life and do not distinguish him from the rest, with the exception of situations where the need for blood transfusion arises, and also with the exception of pregnancy.
Blood groups are important not only when transfusing blood from a donor to a recipient and when planning pregnancy. Scientists in the field of hematology have long identified a connection between the category of blood flow and a person’s lifestyle, nutrition and behavioral factors. It is known that each of the four blood groups was formed as a result of changes in habitat, nutritional structure, or due to interfaith marriages. Depending on the predominance or paucity of a particular blood group, one can judge what is the rarest blood group?
How did the AB0 blood classification system come about?
Many people probably know that the classification of blood fluid into groups began only a century ago. This event occurred thanks to the scientific research of the Austrian scientist Karl Landsteiner, who discovered differences in the blood of the patients he examined.
During his observations, he identified the main differences that allowed him to classify blood flow into three groups:
- I (0)
- II (A)
- III (B)
The features of the blood substance were the absence, as in the case of the first blood group, or the presence of antigenic properties of red blood cells, as in the second and third categories. But years later, a colleague of the famous scientist discovers another group of the bloodstream with the presence of both types of antigens A and B. This category was also included in the AB0 system as the fourth type of bloodstream.
The process of evolution of blood substance
To figure out which blood group is the rarest, you will need to consider the sequence of changes in the bloodstream from the first to the fourth category. Initially, according to scientific researchers, all people had the first type of blood, in which the erythrocyte antigen was completely absent. This race lived in conditions of disunity and survived, like many representatives of the animal world, by hunting.
After about 15-20,000 years ago, people switched to an alternative type of diet by taking up agriculture. Due to the change in diet to predominantly cereals, vegetables, fruits and berries, the composition of the bloodstream has changed, which now belongs to the second type. His behavioral style also underwent changes - from wild and aggressive he moved to more flexible and sociable.
But the rarest blood group in the world, the fourth, was formed largely as a result of a reaction to marital relationships mixed in groups. That is, as a result of the combination of the second “agricultural” and the third “nomadic, pastoral” categories of blood flow. The fourth type of blood substance is not only rare, its number is about 7% of all inhabitants of the planet. But it is also a mystery to scientists and doctors to this day due to its biological complexity. Partly because it combines the antigenic characteristics of red blood cells A and B. Researchers are still continuing to study this category of blood.
Features of the fourth blood flow group
It is generally accepted that the emergence of the rarest blood group in humans occurred only a thousand years ago as a result of incestuous marriages between the Indo-European and Mongoloid races. There is another version of the formation of the fourth variation of the blood flow. It lies in the fact that when humanity resolved all its everyday issues with shelter and food, people began to develop creative abilities. And this theory is not unfounded, because those who have the rare fourth blood category really stand out among their fellow tribesmen.
Rare personality traits of representatives of the fourth category:
- pronounced creative abilities;
- extraordinary spiritual organization;
- sensitive perception of reality;
- craving for everything beautiful;
- developed intuition;
- impeccable taste.
Carriers of the fourth type of blood flow are altruists, distinguished by kindness, compassion and selflessness. They take everything to heart and are always ready to help. But it is not only psychological qualities that group IV blood plasma is so remarkable for.
It is reliably known that it provides its owner with a special immunity, capable of exhibiting the properties of both types II and III blood flow, and less often unique ones.
The weak points of the fourth category of blood substance include the cardiovascular system; in addition, there is a risk of developing various oncological pathologies, “slow” infections and other abnormalities. In case of need for blood transfusion, this type stands out for its versatility. But you will need to take into account its compatibility with other types of blood fluid.
Compatibility table of 4 blood flow groups:
| Group name | Recipient | Donor |
|---|---|---|
| AB (IV) | 0 (I), A (II), B (III), AB (IV) | AB (IV) |
As can be seen from the table, people with the rarest blood group - the fourth category of blood substance - are considered universal recipients, even if they themselves are capable of being donors only for people with the same group as theirs. Along with the type of blood, the Rh factor is also important, whether it is negative or positive. Therefore, if you answer the question what is the most exclusive category of blood flow, then the answer will be that this is the fourth group of blood substance, which has a negative Rh factor.
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Over the long history of its existence, humanity has been forced to adapt to the changing conditions of the earthly world. The person himself and his biochemical properties changed. In the modern world, it is known that people’s blood does not have the same Rh factor and group affiliation. The rarest of them is described in the article.
What is blood in general or rare blood - what is it? Blood is a special mobile tissue in a liquid state that connects the entire set of internal fluids, that is, it is plasma, and it contains cells, red blood cells. Each blood has its own characteristics, including immunity.
Human bodies have different working resources, plasma has its own needs. The blood indicator is the Rh factor, that is, a special protein on the surface of red blood cells called erythrocytes. Rhesus is divided into positive with a sign (Rh(+)) and negative with a sign (Rh(–)).
Various processes can occur in the body; our most precious biological fluid reacts to each of them. The reaction is reflected in the results of human blood tests. Based on research and scientific data, tables are compiled so that people can compare their ideas with accurate information.
The tables contain symbols indicating the groups: I(0), II(A), III(B), IV(AB). Among the indicators there are rare ones, there is data on prevalence, each line provides certain knowledge.
The most common group in the world is the first; almost half of the inhabitants of planet Earth have such blood. Most Europeans are carriers of the second group, the third group is small, found in only 13% of earthlings.
The rarest in the world is the fourth. There are quite a lot of people with the first blood group with a negative Rh factor, for some reason the fourth Rh negative blood group is considered rare. The first two groups are recognized as the most common, the third is less common, but the rarest is the fourth negative. Of all the varieties, it has become the rarest species, the most mysterious. A small number of earthly inhabitants were lucky enough to become owners of the fourth group. So this is the rarest group blood in people.
A conditional rating was formed based on the demand for all known types of blood transfusions. Each type differs from the others in its resistance or susceptibility to different diseases.
About the rarest blood group
In the twentieth century, many scientific discoveries occurred, among them the conditional classification of blood into groups. This was a good advancement in medicine, especially in emergency cases of saving people. Bleeding is a very life-threatening situation. The discovery made it possible to find donors and prevent unnecessary mixing of blood, thereby saving many, many human lives. As it turned out later, in nature there are different subtypes of blood, explained by the presence of Rh factors. It turned out that among all the groups there is the rarest group IV. The types differ in the content of agglutinogen proteins on the surface of red blood cells.
People need to know where they belong. To the question, what is the rarest blood group, there is a simple answer - IV (–), phenomenal. And the first negative is inherent in 15% of Europeans, about 7% of Africans and is almost absent among Indians. Science continues its research on these topics.
Why is group 4 singled out?
About two millennia ago, a new amazing sign of blood was formed. Then it turned out that this is the rarest group. The exclusivity lies in combining into one whole the complete opposites of blood type - A and B. But it is the most needed at all blood transfusion stations. Scientists have noticed that the owners of this phenomenon are endowed with a flexible system of protecting the body from diseases (immune).
Modern biology considers this group complex, which appeared not under the influence of the environment, but as a result of the mixing of people of different religious denominations or belonging to different racial communities. In addition, IV is inherited only in half of the cases when both parents have such blood. If one parent has type AB, then there is only a 25% chance that children will be born with this group. The antigens present affect its properties in different ways, sometimes similarities with the second appear, sometimes signs of the third are noticeable. And sometimes this rare group demonstrates a peculiar combination of both groups.
There are some conclusions regarding the characteristics, indicators of characteristic features, and health status. For example, people with a rare group are less adapted to prolonged physical activity. It is advisable to replace burdensome sports activities with light, acceptable yoga. The psychological characteristics of these people are manifested in nobility, sincerity, composure and calmness. They show more of their spiritual organization in creativity.
The carriers of the rare fourth group are not deprived by nature; they live and develop like all other inhabitants of the planet. The only concern may be the issue of donation.
Most common
There is a group in nature that is much more common than the fourth. This is the first one, it is called universal. The rest are placed somehow in order of priority. About half the population has it. However, such statistics are relative and approximate. The fact is that each nationality has specific characteristics according to groups and Rh factor; it is believed that this phenomenon is associated with heredity.
The first is not only the most common, but also the most, one might say, universal. If during transfusion it is necessary to carefully approach the combination of blood groups, then the first one is suitable for all patients, regardless of their group affiliation. This versatility is explained by the absence of antigens; this is confirmed by the marking number 0.
World distribution statistics
There are about 3 dozen varieties of blood groups known in the world. In our country, the classifier of the Czech scientist Jan Jansky is used, according to which liquid tissue is divided into 4 groups. The classification is based on the presence of antigens (substances foreign to the body) on the surface of red cells -.
The separation occurs according to the ABO system:
I (0) – absence of antigens;
II (A) – antigen A is present;
III (B) – antigen B is present;
IV (AB) – antigens A and B are present.
Statistics show the prevalence of people by blood type:
| Blood type | Found in the population |
| (I) 0 + | 40% |
| (I) 0 | 7% |
| (II) A+ | 33% |
| (II) A – | 6% |
| (III) B + | 8% |
| (III) B – | 2% |
| (IV) AB + | 3% |
| (IV) AB – | 1% |
This shows that the percentage of people with blood group 4 is the smallest. In emergency cases, group affiliation marks in a passport or military ID can help.
The rarest Blood group in the world is IV. The child inherits 50% of the group from his parents. Regarding Rh, Rh is individual compatibility. It is very important for the conception and development of a child that these indicators coincide in both parents. Often miscarriages during pregnancy occur for precisely these reasons.
Blood group affiliation usually does not change in people throughout their lives, including after a transfusion.
Transplantation and manipulation features
Often people find themselves in extreme situations when acute blood loss poses a real threat to life. The main indication is blood transfusion, and this is a very serious, responsible manipulation. This complex action has its own characteristics and characteristics. This requires strict adherence to the rules approved for such cases and highly qualified specialists. The rules for conducting a kind of operation without incisions on the patient’s skin are strict and provide for these manipulations in a hospital setting in order to instantly respond to all kinds of reactions or complications. If possible, medical professionals try to find a life-saving method without such a procedure.
The reasons for performing a transplant from a donor to a patient may be:
- heavy bleeding;
- state of shock;
- prolonged bleeding, including during complex surgical operations;
- low content in severe anemia;
- deviations in the processes of blood formation.
During a transfusion, the patient's health is directly dependent on the coincidence of group affiliation and the Rh factor. Rh mismatch leads to death. The universal groups are I and IV.
In the human community, the phenomenon of voluntary donation of blood or its components is widely practiced. For donation, people all over the world donate their biological tissues. Donor material is used for scientific, research, and educational purposes; medicines are produced from it. It is also needed for emergency transfusion. The effect is achieved only with complete compatibility of the blood of the donor and the subject receiving help. This must be a group match, according to Rhesus, and also individual compatibility.
Thus, human blood represents a mysterious natural phenomenon with which the very existence of man and his characteristic features are connected. This living organism exhibits wonderful properties that have not yet been fully studied. Scientists continue to find answers, but there is a lot of interesting work ahead that requires attention and full dedication.
Blood is the personification of mobile connective tissue, consisting of plasma, as well as formed components, including leukocytes, platelets and erythrocytes. Even from a school biology course, we know that there are generally accepted classifications of this liquid, which include the ABO system and the Rh factor. How to determine a person's blood type? To accomplish this task, a simple medical test is performed in which monoclonal antibodies are added and the reaction is observed. It is thanks to these tests and statistics that today it is not difficult to identify the rarest blood groups, taking into account the Rh factor.
Percentage of blood groups
Thus, the ABO system provides for the conditional division of different blood groups according to the presence of three antigens. At first, there was only Group I, which was considered the primary source of the others. Currently, about 40% of the population of the entire planet are its owners. They mainly live in South and Central America. Blood type II is rarer - it is characteristic mainly of Europeans, it belongs to about 30% of the world's population. Even less common are carriers of blood group III, who are predominantly Asian residents. In total, about 22% of people have this type of blood. And only 5.5% of the population, regardless of location, have group IV. Considering how difficult it is to find a donor for those with the latter type of blood, in some states it is customary to force such people to donate it for storage.
5 rarest blood groups according to the ABO system and Rh factor
It is no secret that in addition to ABO, the Rh factor is used to classify blood groups. There are only two: positive and negative. The first case is widespread. Rh negative is extremely rare and indicates the absence of the D antigen, which in some people is found on the surface of red blood cells. Despite this fact, owners of even a positive fourth blood group are very rare, since there are only more than 5 percent of them in the world.
It is important to understand that it is extremely difficult to find a donor for this blood transfusion. Fortunately, medicine has long been developing the topic related to the creation of blood substitutes. Perhaps in the near future the ABO system and Rh factors will remain only part of the story.
One of the rarest blood groups is considered to be the first negative, whose carriers make up only 4.33% of the total population in the world. It is believed that owners of this fluid are universal donors. That is, their blood is suitable for representatives of other groups. At the same time, in medicine they try to use not only the ABO classification, but also the Rh factor. Accordingly, if possible, for people with the first negative group, they try to look for the same donors. Not at all, they are not easy to find. Therefore, the first positive group is often used in case of emergency situations.
The same trend is observed here as with a positive Rh factor - the higher the group, the less common its owners are. For example, the ratio of second negative blood is only 3.52% of the total number of people on Earth. Only negative groups 1 and 2 are suitable for transfusion.
It is believed that the presence of such blood in a woman, provided that the partner is Rh positive, provides a number of difficulties in bearing a fetus. Actually this is not true. The fact is that Rh conflict can occur not with a man, but with a child. And then only if he inherits a positive factor. As practice shows, children more often accept their mother's Rhesus. However, you will still have to pay due attention to the examinations.
If we take the total population as 7.5 billion people, it turns out that only 97 million of them have a third negative blood group. This figure is 1.3% of the total number of people. Nothing is a small result. Accordingly, in some countries there may be only a few dozen people who can act as a “net donor”. Consequently, the inhabitants of the planet have a hard time with this group. But we should not forget about progress in the field of medicine, and that alternative options are already known. We need to wait a few more years, and artificial blood substitutes will be used everywhere. In any case, that's what I want to believe.
The rarest blood group in the world is the fourth with a negative Rh factor. About 0.40% of the population can boast of having this blood, although there is nothing particularly to be happy about.
Finally, I would like to add that there is a tiny percentage of people in the world whose group it is impossible to define due to the lack of appropriate classification. In 1952, a grandiose scientific discovery took place, for which there is no explanation to date. Experts called the phenomenon the “Bombay Phenomenon.” This happened as part of a study of a malaria epidemic. As a result, three people were found in whose blood antigens could not be found to determine their group and rhesus. It turned out that agglutinogens are not synthesized on the membrane of their blood. We are talking about universal donors.
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