Respiratory functions of blood of the yak, llama, camel, Dybowski deer, and African elephant

Abstract

Blood samples from a yak, llama, camel, deer, and African elephant were analyzed for oxygen capacity, "standard bicarbonate" content, oxygen dissociation curve, and the magnitude of the Bohr and Haldane effects. These parameters of the respiratory function of the blood have been related to the morphology of the red cells, to the weights of the animals, and to the most important electrolytes in the erythrocytes and in the plasma. The high affinity for oxygen described previously for llama blood is shared by its relative, the camel. Both these animals have a high concentration of hemoglobin within their erythrocytes. Blood from the African elephant showed the greatest affinity for oxygen among the subjects studied.

Modeling of vascular networks

“…This correlation is illustrated in Fig.·4, together with an additional measurement for the elephant (Bartels et al, 1963). With the product N C L C varying with mammal mass to the power 5/6, as required by relations (8a-c), the oxygen transfer rate is thus seen to vary with mammal mass to the power 3/4, in accordance with measurements over a broad range on mammal size.…”

Improvement of tissue oxygenation during a 20 days-stay at moderate altitude in connection with mild exercise

“…At very high altitudes, therefore, increased rather than decreased oxygen affinity is a more effective mean of short-term adaptation to markedly reduced environmental oxygen pressure [14]. It has also been repeatedly demonstrated that animals native of high altitudes possess a higher blood O2-affinity than their lowland relatives [5,10,11,37]. But at moderate altitudes where the Po2 is not appreciably lowered, a shift of the ODC to the right can be of advantage to tissue oxygenation [48].…”

The Retinal Ganglion Cell Layer and Visual Acuity of the Camel

“…During the cool desert night, camel body temperature can decrease to around 34.2°C and then increase during the daylight hours up to 40.7°C [Schmidt-Nielsen et al, 1957]. The oxygen-carrying capacity of red blood cells presumably varies with temperature which might be the reason that the hemoglobin has a high affinity for oxygen [Bartels et al, 1963].…”