Penguins continue diving long after muscles run out of oxygen http://www.biologynews.

net May 12, 2011 / 2 pages

Part 1: Key Terms Myoglobin: hemoglobin of muscle, weighing less and carrying more oxygen and less carbon monoxide than blood hemoglobin. Lactate: an ester or salt of lactic acid (a colorless or yellowish, syrupy, water-soluble liquid, C 3 H 6 O 3 , produced during muscle contraction as a product of anaerobic glucose metabolism, abundant in sour milk, prepared usually by fermentation of cornstarch, molasses, potatoes, etc., or synthesized: used chiefly in dyeing and textile printing, as a flavoring agent in food, and in medicine.) Spectrophotometer: an instrument for making photometric comparisons between parts of spectra. Pectoralis Muscles: thick, fan-shaped muscle, situated at the chest (anterior) of the body Hemoglobin: the iron-containing oxygen-transport metalloprotein in the red blood cells of all vertebrates. Metabolism: the set of chemical reactions that happen in living organisms to maintain life. These processes allow organisms to grow and reproduce, maintain their structures, and respond to their environments.

Part 2: Summary This article is about an emperor diving penguin that initially carries sufficient oxygen in three stores, the blood, lungs, and myoglobin in muscle, to sustain aerobic metabolism. But, around 5.6 minutes after leaving the surface, lactate begins to appear in the penguins blood. Then, the bird crosses into a so-called aerobic dive limit, where it switches to anaerobic metabolism in some tissues. The main topic discussed in the article is what triggers that transition. People such as Cassondra Williams explain, after researching and testing, that diving animals were thought to isolate their muscle from the circulatory system, leaving oxygen stored in the tissue as its only source of aerobic metabolism and forcing it to switch to anaerobic respiration once the supply was exhausted. She tested this with the facts of diving records and using spectrophotometers. Of the 50 dives the Williams successfully recorded, 31 exceeded the emperor penguins calculated dive limit. The main point of this article is to show that muscle oxygen depletion is the trigger of the aerobic dive limit.

Part 3: Aspect of Biology The aspect of biology that this subject relates to is animals and their forms and function. It has to do with the gas exchange, occurring between oxygen and carbon dioxide across the bodys surface. The part of an animal where gases are exchanged with the environment is called the respiratory surface. This section of biology has to do with the understanding that gas exchange involves breathing, transport of gases, and exchange of gases with tissue cells. This section of biology also has to do with the fact that hemoglobin carries oxygen and helps transport carbon dioxide and buffer the blood. Oxygen is not very soluble in water, and most of the oxygen in blood is carried by hemoglobin in the red blood cells. Hemoglobin is a multipurpose molecule. It also helps the blood transport carbon dioxide and assists in buffering the blood that is preventing the harmful changes in pH. This article also deals with circulation and the circulatory system, which transports oxygen and carbon dioxide, distributed nutrients to body cells, and conveys waste products of metabolism to specific sites for disposal.

Part 4: Your Thoughts, Reactions, and/or Opinions The information in the article impacts me by informing me that not everything can just be aerobic respiration or anaerobic respiration. It has informed me that oxygen levels can plateau to almost zero and it made me realize that when penguins begin to dive their blood must be flowing into muscle to replenish the oxygen supply during the middle phase of the dive, delaying the onset of the aerobic dive limit. I didnt even know that these things were possible and I now know what happens every time a penguin dives. I never really knew before what happened when penguins were diving. I just knew that they were hungry and wanted food, but now I know that there is much more behind it, and most of us dont even realize it. The information in this article impacts a global society by the same way it affects me. It gives us all a new discovery to explore more into and it may appeal to our interests on animal life. It also shows us how all of us how the bodys parts work together and function to keep an organisms body working long after muscles run out of oxygen. The information in this article just allows for all of us to understand life. It really has no impact on how we act, it just gives us all something to think about and discuss. It is an article that can appeal to everyone of any age. These facts about penguins can entertain people anywhere and it shows us a great deal about how much biology plays a role in life. No matter how hard it is for us to understand it or grasp the concepts, it is something that plays a huge role in life and is basically everywhere around us.