Glucose-6-phosphate dehydrogenase (G6PD) is a cytoplasmic enzyme with an important function in cell oxidative damage prevention. Erythrocytes have a predisposition towards oxidized environments due to their lack of mitochondria, giving G6PD a major role in its stability. G6PD deficiency (G6PDd) is the most common enzyme deficiency in humans; it affects approximately 400 million individuals worldwide. The overall G6PDd allele frequency across malaria endemic countries is estimated to be 8%, corresponding to approximately 220 million males and 133 million females. However, there are no reports on the prevalence of G6PDd in Andean communities where bartonellosis is prevalent.

The implementation of molecular and serological tests has led a great decline in transfusion-transmitted infections. Unfortunately, however, this has only occurred in high-income countries, whereas the scenario is different in low-income countries and in rural areas of middle-income countries, in which access to serological tests is sometimes not feasible or limited by economic factors. These factors result in a population that is more vulnerable and at increased risk of infections. Although the search for relevant pathogens that can be transmitted by blood transfusion is implemented worldwide, various pathogens that can be present in blood bank donations remain under studied, as in the case of some bacteria such as Leptospira spp. and Bartonella spp. Bartonella species are re-emerging blood-borne organisms, capable of causing prolonged infections in animals and humans, while leptospiros...