Blood type may be a factor in coronavirus susceptibility

According to preliminary test results conducted by Chinese researchers, Covid-19 affects those with type A blood more than any other blood type. The researchers' test sample consisted of 2,000 infected patients from Wuhan and Shenzhen, and compared those infected with the rest of the healthy population.

The research team is helmed by the Centre for Evidence-Based and Translational Medicine at Zhongnan Hospital of Wuhan University's Wang Xinghuan. Wang has made it a point to emphasize that these tests are not conclusive. And the study has not been peer reviewed.

“Of 206 patients who had died from Covid-19 in Wuhan, 85 had type A blood, which was 63 per cent more than the 52 with type O,” according to Yahoo! News. “The pattern existed across different age and gender groups.” Wang suggested that it may be a good idea to test each patient’s ABO blood type, as it may prove helpful in medical professionals finding a specific course of action.

The study group of 2,000, though not small, "is dwarfed by the total number of patients infected by the coronavirus, now exceeding 197,000 globally,” Gao Yingdai, a researcher with the State Key Laboratory of Experimental Haematology in Tianjin, said.

Another shortcoming of the research thus far is that it has not provided researchers with any explanation about the phenomenon or the molecular interaction between the contagion and the structure of different red blood cells.

Scientists still debate what it was that made different blood types in the first place, “though one theory is that they are a genetic memory of plagues,” according to Yahoo! News. “Others argue that environmental factors such as altitude, temperature or humidity might have played a role to favour the increase of certain blood type populations.”

Gao and other researchers have made it clear that this information may be useful for scientists and medical professionals, but it should not change the habits and protocol for citizens. Those with type A blood are not guaranteed to contract the pathogen, and those with O blood type should not be bouyed by this information.