Oxygen and acid‐base status related drives to gill ventilation in carp

Abstract

Gill ventilation in carp Cyprinus carpio increased 50% with a reduction of [O 2 ] a to 60% of the control value. Small decreases of inspired PO 2 also increased ventilation, which occurred without any significant changes of the blood gas picture. Ventilation increased with hypercapnia but only if [O 2 ] a became reduced by concomitant Bohr and Root shifts. Consistently, hypercapnia failed to increase ventilation when combined with hyperoxia. Therefore, it was not possible to ascribe any ventilatory response to specific CO 2 /pH receptors.