Blood from a person with “AB+” blood is transplanted into a person with “O-“ blood. Is this a bad thing?

Question

Why? What antibodies may be found in the recipient?

Answer 1

It is a bad thing.

AB+ is the universal acceptor.

O- is the universal donor.

The process you described is backwards from ideal.

The antibodies present in O- are A and B.

Answer 2

yes its bad. AB+ can accept from every one and O- gives to everyone. if you gave AB+ to O- they would destroy the blood because they don't have the correct antigens

Answer 3

One quibble:  We transfuse blood.  We transplant organs.  *g*

An O negative person can have antibodies to at least three things in the transfused blood:  the A antigen, the B antigen, and the Rh factor.  (They may or may not have the Rh factor antibodies--it partly depends on whether they've been exposed to them before.)

The reason that these things are bad is that these antigens are on the actual red blood cells, and in the process of attacking them the RBCs will be damaged or destroyed--or in med-speak, hemolyzed.  This is bad first of all because then they can't help the person who needs the transfusion, and second because the products that spill out of all those damaged RBCs are also bad for the person.

Someone who is AB+ does not have antibodies to these factors because having them is normal for them, so their body's immune system is trained to ignore them and not produce antibodies against them.  Because the AB+ person has no antibodies, it doesn't matter whose blood they get--they are not sensitive to any of it.  (That's a little bit of a simplification, but that's why we cross-match blood donors and recipients.)

Answer 4

It is a very bad thing... lethal in fact.  The transfused blood would cause rbc aggregates (clumping) that would shut down the kidneys and block the capillaries... possibly resulting in respiratory failure.

The antibodies found in an O Neg recipient are Anti-AB, Anti-A and Anti-B ..which is reactive with A; B; and AB blood.  There would only be an Rh factor antibody present if the person had previously been sensitized to the Rh due to pregnancy or transfusion.