Saturday, 13 June 2020

Does Having a Blood 'O' Group Offer Protection From Covid-19?



The 23 and Me company claim to have established, in a large study conducted on hospitalised folk,  that having an 'O'  Blood Group (dictated by the 'ABO' marker gene) provides some protection from infection by Sars-CoV-2 (https://www.technologynetworks.com/genomics/news/large-study-suggests-blood-type-o-may-be-a-protective-factor-against-covid-19-335881?fbclid=IwAR1QnpHu-qPJh1lLBefU6t87ZGCE8IaxKFXZnOlZaZ-MqSrsPTnHpCe6LOI). This is an interesting observation and adds a snippet to our understanding of this new pandemic. I can't help feeling, however, that the interpretation is a little simplistic. One's blood group, based in this single marker, does differ geographically and local  'gene pools' vary. We already know that BME folk appear to be more likely to be fatally infected by the virus than other 'racial' groups. Much of that increased risk, however, appears to be linked to socio-economic conditions.  These a) alter the nature of probable employments (some of which increase the chances of being infected); b) are associated with life styles that may increase the possibilities of developing 'under-laying' health conditions (like diabetes and heart conditions) and c) can dictate the nature of how people live (crowded, multi-generational living is more common in poorer sections of society). All of these worsen the prognosis when getting a Covid-19 infection. People are generally attracted to simple 'genetic' explanations but I feel that this is a distinctly premature conclusion.

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