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Some body fluid characteristics of the Antarctic fish, Trematomus bernacchii

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Abstract

An examination of some characteristics of the blood plasma and urine of Trematomus bernacchii, an Antarctic fish, shows that at least in certain seasons the freezing points of these fluids are adjusted in response to environmental temperature. During October and November, freezing point of the urine was found to be about 0.7°C higher than that of the water. Adjustment of freezing point is seen to be intimately related to chloride concentration. At high temperatures magnesium concentration in the urine may be quite high; sodium replaces magnesium under cold stress. During cold stress, sodium and chloride move into the urine independently of each other.

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. Department of Biological Sciences, University of California at Santa Barbara, Santa Barbara, California, USA

    D. C. Potts

  2. Department of Biology, University of Oregon, Eugene, Oregon, USA

    R. W. Morris

Authors
  1. D. C. Potts
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  2. R. W. Morris
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Communicated by G. L. Voss, Miami

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Potts, D.C., Morris, R.W. Some body fluid characteristics of the Antarctic fish, Trematomus bernacchii . Marine Biol. 1, 269–276 (1968). https://doi.org/10.1007/BF00360775

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  • DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/BF00360775

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