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ABO blood types

A, B, O and AB are the four major blood types. Your type depends on which kind of glycoproteins, or antigens, are found on the outside of your blood cells. As these antigens are entirely genetically determined, then so is your ABO blood type.

deCODEme predicts customers’ genetically determined ABO blood types.

SEE WHAT YOUR GENETIC TEST RESULTS COULD LOOK LIKE


The deCODEme Complete Scan analyzes your DNA and identifies which combination of the three ABO alleles you carry on chromosome 9 and therefore which blood type you are likely to have.


Please note that the results of the deCODEme genetic scan cannot replace a traditional ABO blood typing test used for medical procedures.

deCODE your genetically determined ABO blood type with deCODEme

All human blood is similar, but some blood types are more similar than others

In most respects all humans have very similar blood. As a result, it is possible to transfer blood from one human to another. This procedure, called blood transfusion, is now routine and safe in modern medical practice, and has saved the lives of countless people since being widely adopted in the 1940s. However, you cannot receive blood from just anyone. Your blood must be compatible with that of the blood donor.

ABO blood types are determined by red blood cell antigens

There are four different ABO blood types, named A, B, O and AB. Your ABO blood type depends on which kind of glycoprotein or antigen is found on the outside of your blood cells. These glycoproteins come in three forms and are referred to as A, B and O.

The gene that determines your ABO blood type is found on chromosome nine

The gene that determines your ABO blood type is found on chromosome 9 and is called ABO glycosyltransferase. In the simplest terms, this gene may be said to come in three different forms, that is, it has three different alleles. These alleles are also named A, B and O, because each is responsible for the production of its namesake glycoprotein (antigen). It is therefore the combination of alleles that you inherited from your parents that determines which glycoproteins (antigens) are found on your blood cells and thereby your ABO blood type.

Six possible allele combinations determine four distinct ABO blood types

The six possible distinct combinations of alleles (and antigens), and the four distinct blood types they determine, are shown below:

Combination of ABO alleles ABO antigens on the surface of blood cells ABO blood type
1. AA A A
2. AO A and O
3. BB B B
4. BO B and O
5. AB A and B AB
6. OO O O

The deCODEme Complete Scan identifies which combination of the three ABO alleles you carry on chromosome 9 and therefore which blood type you are likely to have. At the present time, sufficient predictive data is only available for customers of European ancestry.

Please note that the results of the deCODEme scan cannot replace a traditional ABO blood typing test that is used for critical medical procedures such as blood transfusion or organ transplantation. What we provide here is a prediction of your ABO blood type based on the genetic variants included in the deCODEme Complete Scan.

Scientific references

  1. Yip SP. (2002). Sequence variation at the human ABO locus. Annals of Human Genetics. Jan;66(Pt 1):1-27.
  2. Seattle SNPs Variation Discovery Resource – ABO:ABO blood group.

This content was last reviewed on February 08, 2010.


Amy Doneen Nurse Practitioner - deCODEme customer

‘We have the ability to test someone’s genetic risk… and then make clinical decisions based on that genetic backdrop.’

Amy L. Doneen A.R.N.P.,
Nurse Practitioner

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