The A-B-0 Blood Groups of Rhesus Monkeys: New Observations

Abstract

A rhesus monkey family is described in which a group A offspring was born from a group AB mother and a group B male parent. Discovery of A and O genes in rhesus monkeys indicates that this species of macaques is polymorphic for the A-B-0 blood groups, and not monomorphically B, as previously believed.

The human‐ABO blood groups of free‐ranging long‐tailed macaques (Macaca fascicularis) and parapatric rhesus macaques (M. mulatta) in Thailand

“…The ABO blood groups of rhesus macaques in the present study showed polymorphism, in contrast to the previous studies that reported that only group B was found in the majority of rhesus macaques that originated from China and India [12, 13]. Although Socha and Lasano [16] have proposed that rhesus macaques are polymorphic for the human‐type ABO group genetic system, they based that solely on the discovery of one monkey with group AB and another with group A. According to Fooden [5], extant rhesus macaques are classified into east (China and its vicinity), west (India and its vicinity), and Indochinese groups, and blood groups have not been previously studied in the Indochinese group.…”