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Plausible Interpretation of the Bohr Effect in Haemoglobin

Abstract

THE release of oxygen when a solution of haemoglobin is acidified is often referred to as the Bohr effect1,2. The phenomenon is a consequence of the difference between the titration curves of oxy and deoxyhaemoglobin. In physiological conditions, the acidification is caused by carbon dioxide entering the blood stream at the muscle tissue, and there may be further specific reaction of the carbon dioxide with the haemoglobin3. The observations presented here deal with the titration curve of haemoglobin in the absence of carbon dioxide, and were obtained as part of an effort to interpret Kerr effect data on haemoglobin4.

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ORTTUNG, W. Plausible Interpretation of the Bohr Effect in Haemoglobin. Nature 220, 1122–1124 (1968). https://doi.org/10.1038/2201122a0

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