What will happen when Rh- mixes with Rh+?

Question

Could you please explain what is Rhesus and what it does in our body?

How does Rh factor affect individuals having blood transfusion and pregnancy?

Answer 1

the mother produces antibodies against the rh positive baby and kills the fetus

Answer 2

The Rh factor is an antigen attached to the surface of an organism's red blood cells, and is so-called because it was discovered in Rhesus monkeys. One can either be RhD- or RhD+, negative indicating the absence of the factor, positive its presence. Antigens have a general function of being a compatibility indicator. These are substances that help distinguish between "self" and "non-self", which is called the Major Histocompatibility Complex (MHC).

The presence of an antigen in a substance that enters the body will signal an invasion of "non-self" substances, and thus this triggers an immune response. This is the heart of the complications that stem from the differences in Rh factors. Blood donors with RhD+ blood would cause blood clumping or agglutination in an RhD- recipient, which can lead to death. Same goes for an RhD- mother and her RhD+ baby. Literally, the mother is "allergic" to the baby, as her blood carries antibodies that reacts by clumping around the antigens found in the baby's blood (remember that mother and child are connected with an umbilical cord. The mother's blood freely flows to the baby.). This reaction causes the death, or if not, developmental errors in the baby. This syndrome is called erythroblastosis fetalis. This usually happens only to the first born, since the mother's exposure to the RhD+ blood of her first baby allows her to gain immunity, and consequent inactivity of her antibodies against the Rh factor. Back in the old days, the RhD+ first born to RhD- mothers are necessary sacrifices to detect a problem, but now, the problem can be avoided early on. Couples can have their bloods screened for Rh factor differences, and the probable blood type of their offspring can be predicted. The baby and the mother can also be screened of Rh factor differences even in pregnancy. The mother can then take immuno-suppressant drugs that can prevent the action of her antibodies against the baby.