A Negative Plus

A negative against your blood group (Rh-) protects you against Chikungunya, says a study by three Indians published in Virology Journal. A negative against your blood group (Rh-) protects you against Chikungunya, says a study by three Indians published in Virology Journal. A viral disease spread by the Aedes mosquito, Chikungunya is characterised by severe joint pain. After a long lull of over three decades, from the end of 2005 onwards India began to witness frequent outbreaks. The study’s authors, Lokireddy Sudarsanareddy, Vemula Sarojamma and Vadde Ramakrishna, set out to find the genetic predisposition to the disease. They collected blood samples from 468 individuals (100 families) from villages in Andhra Pradesh during an outbreak. About 95 of the 468 subjects showed no symptoms while the rest exhibited the typical fever, headache and joint pains. The study found that none of the 12 Rh- individuals showed any symptoms. “… all Rh positive blood group individuals are susceptible…Rh–ve [have] more resistance to Chikungunya,” pointed out the authors.