Distribution of the Human Rh0(D) Antigen in the Red Cells of Non-Human Primates

Open Access
Publisher Website
Google Scholar
Abstract
Summary: The red cells of chimpanzees (Pan satyrus) and the red cells of one orangutan (Pongo pygmaeus) contain antigenic specificities similar to the Rh0(D) antigen of man. These cells took up significant amounts of I-125 anti-Rh0(D), showed an increase in antibody binding when the ionic strength was reduced and were able to absorb from the anti-Rh0(D) components absorbable by human Rh0(D)-positive red cells. No evidence for the presence of Rh0(D) on the red cells of one rhesus monkey, two baboons and two gibbons was found using these techniques. The amount of Rh0(D) antigen on chimpanzee red cells showed an almost 2.5-fold variation between the highest and lowest values. One of the eight chimpanzees tested reacted as an Rh0(D) negative, in that it did not take up significantly more I-125 than did not human Rh0(D)-negative red cell. The implications of these findings for the antigenic structure of the human Rh0(D) antigen and for the phylogenetic relationships among the primates are discussed.