Xref: utzoo sci.bio:1570 sci.med:7653
Path: utzoo!utgpu!attcan!uunet!husc6!rutgers!att!mtuxo!mtgzz!drutx!jca
From: jca@drutx.ATT.COM (jill c. arnson)
Newsgroups: sci.bio,sci.med
Subject: Re: Blood Questions
Message-ID: <9224@drutx.ATT.COM>
Date: 3 Nov 88 19:14:15 GMT
References: <10241@ihlpa.ATT.COM>
Organization: AT&T, Denver, CO
Lines: 24

in article <10241@ihlpa.ATT.COM>, krista@ihlpa.ATT.COM (Anderson) says:
> Xref: drutx sci.bio:1617 sci.med:8068
> 
> <>
> I have two blood questions:
> 
> 1.  In my parents' family of 5 children, 3 are Rh positive, 1 is Rh
> negative, and 1 says he used to be positive, but now is tested as
> negative.  I don't think it's possible to change Rh factor, is it?
> 

	One possiblity is that the "used to be positive" sibling has a D
variant called Du.  What this means is that part of the mosiac that makes up
the D antigen is missing.  The fact that a person is 'Du positive' can be
confusing is some cases as some people call this D negative, Du positive,
where others simply call this D positive.  Because of this I would see if you
other negative sibling be retested, looking especially for the Du mosaic.  It
DOES make a difference.

-- 
jill c. arnson	(att/ulysses/mtuxo)!drutx!jca
AT&T Bell Labs, Denver; (303)538-4800
*** "When you climb high, remember that the beauty you see is only an illusion
created by God to keep your sanity."