Resumen

LOPEZ DE ROUX, María del Rosario; CORTINA ROSALES, Lázaro; MUNIZ DIAZ, Eduardo  y  BENCOMO HERNANDEZ, Antonio. The granulocyte alloantigens. Clinical importance. Rev Cubana Hematol Inmunol Hemoter [online]. 2003, vol.19, n.2-3. ISSN 0864-0289.

The granulocyte alloantigens are grouped into 2 big categories: specific granulocyte antigens and antigens, whose distribution is wider and comprises other cellular lines. In 1998, it was agreed to establish a new nomenclature of granulocyte alloantigens based on the glycoprotein localization of these antigens. The FcgRIIIb molecule is a member of the superfamily of immunoglobulins (CD 16), in which many of the specific granulocyte alloantigens are found. There are other alloantigens with an unknown function and localization. These molecules have a great clinical importance, since they are involved in a series of diseases, such as alloimmune neonatal neutropenia, whose moderate clinical character makes it to be unnoticed, the non-haemolytic febrile reaction,the transfusion-related acute lung injury, the immmune neutropenia associated with the bone marrow transplantation and the autoimmune neutropenia. Although there have been advances in the characterization of the granulocyte alloantigens, there are still many points that should be explained, among them, the clinical significance of several antigens. The increasing development of molecular, biological and serological techniques to study the antigens of blood cells will allow us to clear up those points that remain dark in this field of research.

Palabras clave : GRANULOCYTES; ISOANTIGENS; NEUTROPENIA; BLOOD GROUPS [immunology]; RH ISOIMMUNIZATION [complications]; INFANT, NEWBORN, DISEASES.