title: An improved biotonometric method for determination of haemoglobin oxygen equilibrium curves.
abstract: A new biotonometric method for the determination of haemoglobin oxygen equilibrium curves is described. The procedure is based on the mixing of an oxygen-consuming organism, the yeast cell (Saccharomyces cerevisiae), with an oxidized blood/plasma mixture. The yeast cell consumes oxygen at a uniform rate, thus reducing the partial pressure of oxygen in the mixture. This in turn induces the dissociation of oxygen in a characteristic manner. The study of the whole blood samples from 26 healthy volunteer subjects gave the following results: p50 = 3.63 kPa +/- 0.23 kPa (mean +/- 1 S.D.); Hill slope n = 2.44 +/- 0.16; and CO2 Bohr factor = -0.47 +/- 0.11. For the within-run imprecision the coefficients of variation for the different parameters were: p50 C.V. = 4.4%; Hill slope n C.V. = 4.7%; and CO2 Bohr factor C.V. = 19%. The determination can be carried out with simple equipment: a blood gas analyzer with a coupled recorder.
authors.affiliation: Department of Clinical Physiology, Tampere University Hospital, Finland.
authors.forename: T O
authors.initials: TO
authors.lastname: Ahola
mesh_terms: D000328:Adult; D005260:Female; D006454:Hemoglobins / Q000378:metabolism*; D006801:Humans; D008297:Male; D010100:Oxygen / Q000097:blood*; D015203:Reproducibility of Results; D012441:Saccharomyces cerevisiae
chemical_list: D006454:Hemoglobins; D010100:Oxygen