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Background: Recent genome-wide association studies in Caucasians suggested that an association exists between the ABO gene locus and soluble levels of P-selectin (sP-selectin). However, it is unclear if the relationship corresponds to the phenotypic expression of ABO groups or is present in different ethnic groups. The aim of this study was to verify this observation at both genotypic and phenotypic levels in a healthy Chinese population.Study Design and Methods: The ABO blood groups were determined by both phenotypes and genotypes in 440 healthy Chinese Han volunteers, while P-selectin levels were evaluated for sP-selectin and total platelet P-selectin (pP-selectin).Results: ABO phenotyping and quantitative analysis of individual sP-selectin plasma levels were combined to demonstrate that individuals phenotypically expressing the A antigen have approximately 20% lower sP-selectin plasma levels than those carrying the B or O phenotype (p < 0.0001), but that no difference exists between A and AB and between B and O phenotypes. Genotyping data revealed that the presence of the A gene could be attributed to the observed difference in phenotype comparison, with no difference between A/A, A/B, and A/O genotypes. There were also no associations between ABO blood groups, either phenotypes or genotypes, and pP-selectin levels.Conclusion: This study demonstrated an association between sP-selectin levels and ABO groups in a Chinese Han population, implicating its generalizability to other ethnic groups. This finding will improve the understanding of the mechanism of ABO blood group-associated diseases. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Background We explored the effects of repeated plateletpheresis on the platelet P-selectin expression and soluble P-selectin (sP-selectin) concentrations in platelet donors. Methods Totally 289 platelet donors and 97 first-time whole blood (WB) donors were enrolled from the blood donor registry at the Fujian provincial blood center, China. The accumulative numbers of plateletpheresis in the last 2 y for participants were recorded, and the basal concentrations of platelet count, sP-selectin and total platelet P-selectin (pP-selectin) were determined. Results Platelet donors had significantly higher basal concentrations of sP-selectin compared to WB donors (24.12 ± 7.33 ng/mL vs. 20.74 ± 5.44 ng/mL, P < 0.0001), with no difference in platelet count and pP-selectin concentrations. Increased numbers of platelet donation were correlated with a steady increase of sP-selectin ( r = 0.18, P = 0.002). Multivariate regression analysis identified that the frequency of plateletpheresis is an independent factor for the rise of the sP-selectin concentration (t = 2.64, P = 0.009) while no association was found for pP-selectin and platelet count. Conclusions Repeated plateletpheresis could result in an increased basal concentration of sP-selectin in blood donors whereas not an alteration in the concentrations of total platelet P-selectin. It remains to be determined whether this might be a consequence of endothelial activation or platelet activation or some other phenomenon. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]