Study: Protein Myglobin Key to Common Carp's Ability to Survive with Little Oxygen

Study: Protein Myglobin Key to Common Carp's Ability to Survive with Little Oxygen

By Andrew Cossins

Source: Underwatertimes

6/1/2006

The common carp has given scientists at the University of Liverpool an unusual insight into how animals can survive in environments with little or no oxygen

The research team found that the protein myglobin - thought to act as an oxygen store in the heart and muscle cells of humans and vertebrate animals - also exists in many other tissues of the common carp, enabling it to survive in low oxygenated environments.

Myglobin is found in large quantities in diving mammals such as whales and seals and helps them remain submerged for long periods during deep sea dives. Similarly in humans, myglobin levels in the heart and some fatigue-resistant muscles increase when at high altitudes. New findings of myglobin levels in the common carp could help scientists understand how humans could survive loss of oxygen supply to their tissues during a stroke or a heart attack.