We use cookies to understand how you use our site and to improve your experience. This includes personalizing content and advertising. To learn more, click here. By continuing to use our site, you accept our use of cookies. Cookie Policy.

Features Partner Sites Information LinkXpress
Sign In
Advertise with Us
LGC Clinical Diagnostics

Download Mobile App




Events

09 Apr 2024 - 12 Apr 2024
15 Apr 2024 - 17 Apr 2024
23 Apr 2024 - 26 Apr 2024

Blood Type Linked to Severity of Diarrhea

By LabMedica International staff writers
Posted on 29 May 2018
Print article
Image: A computer-generated image of E. coli (Photo courtesy of Alissa Eckert and Jennifer Oosthuizen / CDC).
Image: A computer-generated image of E. coli (Photo courtesy of Alissa Eckert and Jennifer Oosthuizen / CDC).
Enterotoxigenic Escherichia coli are responsible for millions of cases of diarrhea and hundreds of thousands of deaths every year, mainly of young children. It primarily infects people living in or visiting developing countries.

Some people infected with the bacterium develop severe, cholera-like, watery diarrhea that can be lethal. Others experience unpleasant symptoms but recover easily, while some do not get sick at all. A new study shows that a kind of E. coli most associated with "travelers' diarrhea" and children in underdeveloped areas of the world causes more severe disease in people with blood type A.

A team of scientists led by those at Washington University School of Medicine (St. Louis, MO, USA) carried out controlled human infection clinical trials, and gave healthy volunteers a dose of an E. coli strain originally isolated from a person in Bangladesh with severe, cholera-like diarrhea. Then, they observed the volunteers for five days. Those who developed moderate to severe diarrhea were treated with antibiotics. The disease comes on quickly, so anyone who was still healthy at the end of five days was unlikely to get sick later. Nonetheless, any remaining healthy participants also were given antibiotics to clear the bacteria before going home.

The investigators obtained data and blood samples from 106 people, each of whom participated in one of four such studies. They found that people with blood type A got sick sooner and more seriously than those of other blood types. More than eight out of 10 (81%) of blood group A people developed diarrhea that required treatment, as compared with about half of people with blood group B or O. They found that the bacteria produce a specific protein that sticks to A-type sugars, but not B- or O-type sugars, on intestinal cells. Since the protein also sticks to E. coli, it effectively fastens the bacteria to the intestinal wall, making it easy for them to deliver diarrhea-causing toxins to intestinal cells.

F. Matthew Kuhlmann, MD, a clinical investigator and a senior author of the study, said, “I don't want anyone to cancel their travel plans to Mexico because they have type A blood, Or the converse: I don't want anyone to think they're safe because their blood group is not A. There are a lot of different species of bacteria and viruses that can cause diarrhea, so even though this blood-group association is strong, it doesn't change your overall risk. You should continue taking the same precautions whatever your blood type.” The study was published on May 17, 2018, in The Journal of Clinical Investigation.

Related Links:
Washington University School of Medicine

Platinum Member
COVID-19 Rapid Test
OSOM COVID-19 Antigen Rapid Test
Specimen Collection & Transport
POCT Fluorescent Immunoassay Analyzer
FIA Go
New
Gold Member
Magnetic Bead Separation Modules
MAG and HEATMAG

Print article

Channels

Clinical Chemistry

view channel
Image: Reaching speeds up to 6,000 RPM, this centrifuge forms the basis for a new type of inexpensive, POC biomedical test (Photo courtesy of Duke University)

POC Biomedical Test Spins Water Droplet Using Sound Waves for Cancer Detection

Exosomes, tiny cellular bioparticles carrying a specific set of proteins, lipids, and genetic materials, play a crucial role in cell communication and hold promise for non-invasive diagnostics.... Read more

Molecular Diagnostics

view channel
Image: MOF materials efficiently enrich cfDNA and cfRNA in blood through simple operational process (Photo courtesy of Science China Press)

Blood Circulating Nucleic Acid Enrichment Technique Enables Non-Invasive Liver Cancer Diagnosis

The ability to diagnose diseases early can significantly enhance the effectiveness of clinical treatments and improve survival rates. One promising approach for non-invasive early diagnosis is the use... Read more

Hematology

view channel
Image: The low-cost portable device rapidly identifies chemotherapy patients at risk of sepsis (Photo courtesy of 52North Health)

POC Finger-Prick Blood Test Determines Risk of Neutropenic Sepsis in Patients Undergoing Chemotherapy

Neutropenia, a decrease in neutrophils (a type of white blood cell crucial for fighting infections), is a frequent side effect of certain cancer treatments. This condition elevates the risk of infections,... Read more

Pathology

view channel
Image: The OvaCis Rapid Test discriminates benign from malignant epithelial ovarian cysts (Photo courtesy of INEX)

Intra-Operative POC Device Distinguishes Between Benign and Malignant Ovarian Cysts within 15 Minutes

Ovarian cysts represent a significant health issue for women globally, with up to 10% experiencing this condition at some point in their lives. These cysts form when fluid collects within a thin membrane... Read more
Copyright © 2000-2024 Globetech Media. All rights reserved.