Can two Siblings with different Blood types have the same Parents?
Blood is an essential liquid of our body. It supplies oxygen, hormones, nutrients, and even waste material to its respective places. Researchers have categorized blood types into 8 main types according to the ABO system and 2 types according to the Rh system.
Every person belongs to either of these types. Do you have a different blood type than your siblings or parents? Confused and wondering which one of you is adopted. Well, if you are a younger sibling then probably you are thinking about yourself.
Need help? Here is a small hint for you…neither of you is adopted. How? Read this article till the end to find out more.
Blood Types
Blood type is the classification of blood based on antigens and antibodies. Everyone inherited their blood group from the contribution of both parents. There are two main systems to classify blood groups:
# ABO System
# Rh System
You can easily check your blood group at the nearby pathology center. You need to know you’re and your family’s blood group as it can help in case of emergencies.
ABO System
The ABO System classifies blood into several categories by considering antigens and antibodies.
# Antigens: There are two antigens present on the surface of RBCs.
# Antibodies: There are two antibodies present on the surface of RBCs as well.
Considering these, the blood can be classified into A, B, AB, and O.
# A: When antigen A is present in RBCs while antibody is present in plasma then the blood group will be A.
# B: When antigen B is present in RBCs while antibody A is present in plasma.
#AB: When antigen A and B both are present in RBCs and there is no antibody in plasma.
# O: When no antigen is present in RBCs but antibodies A and B Are present in plasma.
Rh Blood Group System
The Rh system classifies blood into two types following the presence or absence of antigen D in the blood.
# When the antigen D is present in the blood then the blood group is +.
# when the antigen D is absent in the blood then the blood group is -.
Blood Transfusion
Knowing your blood group can save lives. Every 2 seconds 2 people need a blood transfusion immediately. But do you know they cannot receive blood just from anyone? They only can receive blood from their matching blood group.
Why?
If two antigens and antibodies of the same group come in contact an agglutination reaction takes place.
As soon as a person receives incompatible blood with different antigens or antibody the body gets alert and blood transfusion fails. The body gives signals to attack anti antibodies and destroy RBCs. This causes blood to form clumps which can lead to blood clots. This can toxic blood, cause allergic reactions and in extreme cases cause death.
| Recipient
Donor |
A+ | A- | B+ | B- | AB+ | AB- | O+ | O- |
| A+ | Yes | Yes | ||||||
| A- | Yes | Yes | Yes | Yes | ||||
| B+ | Yes | Yes | ||||||
| B- | Yes | Yes | Yes | Yes | ||||
| AB+ | Yes | |||||||
| AB- | Yes | Yes | ||||||
| O+ | Yes | Yes | Yes | Yes | ||||
| O- | Yes | Yes | Yes | Yes | Yes | Yes | Yes | Yes |
Universal Donor
# O- is the universal donor of RBCs.
# AB is the universal donor of plasma.
Universal Recipient
# AB is the universal recipient of RBCs.
How is Blood Group Determined?
As said before, people inherit their blood group from their ancestors. Each blood type produces its genotype to decide the baby’s blood group. Let’s find out more about it with the help of this table:
| Phenotype | Genotype |
| A | AA |
| B | BB |
| AB | AB |
| O | OO |
Each parent gives two genotypes and they mix to form a blood type. For example, if a fathers blood group is A+ and the mother is AB+ positive, then the genotypes will be as A, A, AB.
| Parents genotype | A | B |
| A | AA (A*A) | AB (A*B) |
| A | AA(A*A) | AB (A*B) |
Here we have multiple horizontal columns to vertical rows.
| Parent genotype | AA | BB | AB | AO | BO | OO |
| AA | AA | AB | AA,AB | AA,AO | AB, AO | AO |
| BB | AB | BB | AB,BB | AB, BO | BB, BO | BO |
| AB | AA,AB | AB,BB | AA,AB,BB | AA,AO,BO,AB | BB,BO,AB,AO | AO, BO |
| AO | AA,AO | AB, BO | AA,AB,AO,BO | AO, OO | AA, AO, OO | AO, BO, AB, OO |
| BO | AO, AB | BB, BO | AB,AO,BB,BO | AB, AO, BO, OO | BB, BO, OO | BO, OO |
| OO | AO | BO | AO, BO | OO | AO, OO | BO, OO |
Can two siblings with different blood types have the same parents?
Yes, from the above table it is clear that two different siblings can have different blood groups. Moreover, children can have different blood types from their parents also.
But twins will have the same blood group as they are developed from one fertilized egg.
Conclusion
I hope this article has cleared all your doubts, suspicions, and tension. Yes, neither of you is adopted so just relax. And do let us know your opinion in the comment section below.
