Structural studies of haemoglobin from pisces species shortfin mako shark (Isurus oxyrinchus) at 1.9 A resolution.

ABSTRACT: Haemoglobin (Hb) is a tetrameric iron-containing protein that carries oxygen from the lungs to tissues and carbon dioxide from tissues back to the lungs. Pisces are the advanced aquatic vertebrates capable of surviving at wide depth ranges. The shortfin mako shark (SMS) is the pelagic, largest, fastest and most sophisticated species of the shark kingdom with well developed eyes. Mostly the pisces species are cold blooded in nature. Distinctly, the SMSs are warm-blooded animals with an advanced circulatory system. SMSs are capable of maintaining elevated muscle temperatures up to 33 K above the ambient water temperatures at a depth of 150-500 m. SMSs have a diverged air-breathing mechanism compared with other vertebrates. The haemoglobin molecule consists of four polypeptide chains, namely

SUBMITTER: Ramesh P 

PROVIDER: S-EPMC3795541 | biostudies-literature | 2013 Nov

REPOSITORIES: biostudies-literature