The RHCE allele ceCF: the molecular basis of Crawford (RH43)

• Published in: Transfusion (Philadelphia, Pa.) Pa.), 2006-08, Vol.46 (8), p.1334-1342
• Main Authors: Flegel, Willy A., Wagner, Franz F., Chen, Qing, Schlanser, Gloria, Frame, Tom, Westhoff, Connie M., Moulds, Marilyn K.
• Format: Article
• Language: English
• Subjects: African Americans; Alleles; Amino Acid Substitution - immunology; Anesthesia. Intensive care medicine. Transfusions. Cell therapy and gene therapy; Antibodies, Monoclonal - immunology; Biological and medical sciences; Blood Grouping and Crossmatching; Blood. Blood and plasma substitutes. Blood products. Blood cells. Blood typing. Plasmapheresis. Apheresis; Blood. Blood coagulation. Reticuloendothelial system; DNA Mutational Analysis; Epitopes - genetics; Epitopes - immunology; Female; Fundamental and applied biological sciences. Psychology; Fundamental immunology; Gene Frequency - genetics; Gene Frequency - immunology; Genetics of the immune response; Haplotypes - genetics; Haplotypes - immunology; Humans; Immunobiology; Male; Medical sciences; Pharmacology. Drug treatments; Phenotype; Point Mutation - immunology; Rh-Hr Blood-Group System - genetics; Rh-Hr Blood-Group System - immunology; Transfusions. Complications. Transfusion reactions. Cell and gene therapy; United States
• ISSN: 0041-1132; 1537-2995
• DOI: 10.1111/j.1537-2995.2006.00901.x

BACKGROUND: The Crawford antigen (RH43) was described in 1980. It occurred in African American people, as a low‐prevalence Rhesus antigen, who were also VS+. STUDY DESIGN AND METHODS: Twelve blood samples were analyzed because of inquiries into discrepant reactions in routine anti‐D typing. The RHCE alleles were determined by nucleotide sequencing from genomic DNA. The D epitope profile was determined with 60 monoclonal anti‐D. The population frequency was estimated in four major US regional blood centers. RESULTS: The novel RHce(W16C, Q233E, L245V) allele, dubbed ceCF, was found to be occurring in the cde haplotype as cause of the reactivity with the immunoglobulin M anti‐D GAMA401. The ceCF phenotype expressed few D epitopes resembling but not matching the reaction patterns observed with other RhCE variants, like R0Har, ceRT, and ceSL. The frequency of the ceCF phenotype was 0.056 percent among African American persons and 0.007 percent in the general US population. CONCLUSION: The novel RHce(W16C, Q233E, L245V) allele, which is a variant of the known ces allele, RHce(W16C, L245V), occurs in a haplotype with the RHD deletion and represents the molecular basis of the Crawford antigen.