Genes and blood

[Ramanathan]

Hi, Blood cells contains genetic information, am I right? If I donate blood to another guy will he not get my genes and hold the same characterestics as me?

My question is too silly but I had this doubt for a long time. :oops:

Ram

[sundar]

Hi all,

Let us understand few things before knowing facts.

Blood types and possibility of blood transfusion is invented by Karl Landsteiner (Nobel Prize in Physiology or Medicine in 1930), which helped in saving millions.

All living things have genes and human has about 20 to 30K genes. DNA is a sequence of letters (ATGC) which contains all genes. It is possible to transfer a specific gene by isolating it from rest of the genes as a piece of DNA. Gene can be copied using bacterial proteins that naturally copy genes. This can be done either in a test tube or by putting the DNA copy into a bacterial cell.

By now, we understood that genetic information can only be transferred either at a lab or from parent to child not by blood donation.

Chanu

[SUBA]

Hi

After reading Ram's question and reply I understood that transferring gene from one person to other is a big process and cannot be done so easily. But I have one more doubt..

It is true that blood is transfered with genes. What happens to one's genes when it is transferred to other person?


Suba

[Ramanathan]

I sent this question to one of my medico friend and he gave me this reply:


The blood you donate is the end product not the bone marrow itself where it is produced. If you were to take the cells out of the bone marrow and then transplant it i.e. infuse into the receipient then the cells may take hold and mature and divide and all that but generally the host will kill all the cells that do not generally match the host's genetic pattern. That is how most of the harmful activities are kept out of our systems.

I hope that explains the whole thing in a simple nutshell!--
Thankyou

With kind regards

Sincerely yours
Palaniappan

Palani ([email protected]) (ICQ 1102973)
Mr SP Palaniappan FRCSEd., Gleneagles Medical Centre, 1
Jalan Pangkor,
10050 Penang Malaysia Phone and Fax : +60-4-220 2188

[commoner]

Hi,

Some interesting exchanges here.

However, it seems to me that the original question has not really been answered? After all, each and every part of our body carries our genetic information, let alone a large quantity of blood which is supposed to go into someone else's body? As another example, when we have caught a virus (flu or SARS), at times the same virus can be passed on by contact or even saliva when we sneeze, so why not genes?

Anyone?

[Ramanathan]

Hi Commoner,

I think you havent seen my another message to it. I got it from one of my friends. He says that, the core genes are actually present in Bone marrow and gene transmission is only from there and not blood which is an end product. But virus and germs are foreign bodies and will be transmitted thro sneezing.

Rgds,
Ramanathan

[commoner]

Hi Ramanathan,

So, basically are you saying that there are no genes present in blood cells?

[Ramanathan]

No.. The genes in the blood is just the end product. Bone marrow produces the rbc, wbc of the blood and the genes. By donating blood to a person you just transfer the mixture of genes, wbc and rbc. Since we match blood groups before transfer, RBC and WBC will naturaly go hand in hand with the hosts' blood. Whereas the genes inside the blood will be treated like foreign bodies by the host and will be "killed" by the hosts' immune system. So the host cannot get the genetical characters of the donor.

Rgds,
Ramanathan

ps: I may be wrong, can any doctor(s) rectify me?

[spidermn]

Hihi, juz some info which may be helpful to the subject in qn.

Bascially, the blood contains cells like WBCs, and RBCs, and cell fragments like platelets. One thing is that RBCs actually have no nucleus and thus do not contain genetic materials. However, WBCs do have nuclei and thus contain genes. Thus, it is essentially true that genes do get transferred after donation.

B4 infusion, as mentioned, the blood types are actually matched to prevent the patient's body from mounting an attack on the donor cells. But the donor cells still have genes different frm the patient's. However, these donor cells do not affect the patient's own genes because, they are as mentioned "finished products". They carry out their functions (like immune sys, etc) but essentially do not infect/enter the patient's cells like viruses do.

Thus, if the qn is whether we will actually be genetically altered if we receive blood, the ans is definitely no. :)

[yenz]

Hi, Blood cells contains genetic information, am I right? If I donate blood to another guy will he not get my genes and hold the same characterestics as me?

My question is too silly but I had this doubt for a long time. :oops:

Ram

if i m not wrong it contains genetic information but if you donate to someone he/she won't get your genes or having the same char.

[yenz]

Hi, Blood cells contains genetic information, am I right? If I donate blood to another guy will he not get my genes and hold the same characterestics as me?

My question is too silly but I had this doubt for a long time. :oops:

Ram

if i m not wrong it contains genetic information but if you donate to someone he/she won't get your genes or having the same char.
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