MRC Blood Group Unit

TheMRC Blood Group Unit,originally the Blood Group Research Unit, was a research unit of the BritishMedical Research Councilfrom 1946 to 1995. Initially established in theLister Institute,it transferred to theGalton Laboratory(theGeneticsdepartment) ofUniversity College, Londonin 1975, the original home of its predecessor.^[1]

The unit mainly usedserologicaltechniques to discoverblood groupantigens. Only in the last 15 years of its existence weremonoclonal antibodiesand molecular approaches adopted. Blood groups were used to study many aspects of human genetics: including those related toblood transfusion,linkage analysis,mosaicismandchimaerism.

Directors

R.R. Race FRS,1946–1973
Ruth SangerFRS, 1973–1983
Dr Patricia Tippett, 1983–1995

Scientific achievements

These are listed roughly in chronological order of the start of the research. Research on most topics was on-going with significant publications spanning several decades: for instance Xg was discovered in the early 1960s,^[2]but the unit contributed to the identification of the underlying gene, PBDX, in 1994.^[3]

Elucidating the genetics of theRhesus blood group.Director R.R. Race withR.A. Fisherhad proposed the most widely accepted genetic nomenclature for the Rhesus system. Much of the early work of the unit was concerned with identifying genetic variants of this system which became possible after the initial discovery byKarl Landsteinerand the development of theCoombs test.
Human Blood Groups in Man.A technical reference work written by the unit's first two directors. It was first published in 1950; its final, and 6th, edition appearing in 1975. For much of this period this was a standard reference work forClinical HaematologistsandBlood Transfusioncentres.^[4]
Refinement of the genetics of theMNS antigen system.
Xg antigen system.This was the first X-linked blood group to be discovered in 1962, and led to extensive work over the following decades, usually with collaborators, to map genes on the humanX chromosome.
WHOCollaborative Centre for Human Blood Groups.

References

^Peter S. Harper (24 September 2008).A Short History of Medical Genetics.Oxford University Press, USA. pp. 331–.ISBN 978-0-19-020839-4.
^Mann JJ, Cahan A, Gelb AG, et al. A sex-linked blood group. Lancet. 1962;i:8.
^Ellis NA, Tippett P, Petty A, et al. (November 1994). "PBDX is the XG blood group gene".Nat. Genet.8(3): 285–90.doi:10.1038/ng1194-285.PMID 7533029.
^Mazumdar, Pauline M. H. (1995).Species and Specificity: An Interpretation of the History of Immunology.Cambridge University Press. p. 347.ISBN 978-0-521-52523-7.

External links

Archivesat theWellcome Foundation.Some of these have been digitised and are available on line as part of theCodebreakersdigital archive of pioneers of genetics at theWellcome Institute
Clarke, Cyril (1985).Biographical Memoirs of Fellows of the Royal Society31,454–492; Robert Race. doi:10.1098/rsbm.1985.0016 1748-8494
Hughes-Jones, Nevin and Tippett, Patricia (2003).Biographical Memoirs of Fellows of the Royal Society49,461–473. Ruth Ann Sanger. doi:10.1098/rsbm.2003.0027
Articleon the Medical Research Council website.
Povey, S. (2008).Transcriptof oral interview with Prof. Sue Povey, p. 19.Genetic and Medicine Historical Network,Cardiff.
Thomson, A. L. (1975).Half a century of medical research. Vol. II: The programme of the Medical Research Council (UK).pp. xii + 402 pp. Medical Research Council, London.ISBN 0-11-450029-0
Tippett, P.A. (1996).British Blood Transfusion Service Newsletter40,History of the MRC Blood Group Unit.

[Harper2008-1] Peter S. Harper (24 September 2008).A Short History of Medical Genetics.Oxford University Press, USA. pp. 331–.ISBN 978-0-19-020839-4.

[discovery-2] Mann JJ, Cahan A, Gelb AG, et al. A sex-linked blood group. Lancet. 1962;i:8.

[pmid7533029-3] Ellis NA, Tippett P, Petty A, et al. (November 1994). "PBDX is the XG blood group gene".Nat. Genet.8(3): 285–90.doi:10.1038/ng1194-285.PMID 7533029.

[Mazumdar1995-4] Mazumdar, Pauline M. H. (1995).Species and Specificity: An Interpretation of the History of Immunology.Cambridge University Press. p. 347.ISBN 978-0-521-52523-7.

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