Abstract
The extensive in vivo conversion of haemoglobin to the carbon monoxide derivative has no discernible effect on the survival of the red-blooded Antarctic fishPagothenia bernacchii. Analysis of caudally sampled blood of cannulated specimens revealed that reconversion of carbon-monoxy haemoglobin to oxyhaemoglobin was complete within 48 hours. Thus, under stress-free conditions, haemoglobin is not necessary for survival ofP. bernacchii. Red-blooded Antarctic fishes can carry oxygen necessary for routine delivery dissolved in plasma, in a similar way to the haemoglobinless Channichthyidae, although they lack the morphological and physiological adaptations which allow the latter to prosper without any haemoglobin.
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di Prisco, G., Macdonald, J.A. & Brunori, M. Antarctic fishes survive exposure to carbon monoxide. Experientia 48, 473–475 (1992). https://doi.org/10.1007/BF01928166
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DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/BF01928166