title: Effects of high-pressure acclimatization on silver eel (Anguilla anguilla, L.) slow muscle contraction.
abstract: As the spawning migration of the eel is supposed to correspond to a long swimming activity at depth, patterns of slow red muscle contraction have been investigated in European silver eel (Anguilla anguilla L.) exposed for 3 weeks to 10.1 MPa hydrostatic pressure. The results show that pressure-acclimated eels (male and female) show a three-fold decrease in maximum isometric stress of twitch and tetanic contractions while time to peak force, time from peak force to 90% relaxation and ratio of twitch tension to tetanic tension remain unchanged. The observed modifications in slow red muscle mechanical properties do not impede the spawning migration of the eel and are possibly partially compensated by an improvement in the efficiency of oxidative phosphorylation. Effects of changes in membrane fluidity are also discussed.
authors.affiliation: Unité de Physiologie Comparée et intégrative (UCPI-EA 3879), Unité Haute Pression et Métabolisme, UFR Médecine, 22 avenue C. Desmoulins, 29238 Brest cedex, France.
authors.forename: Orlane
authors.initials: O
authors.lastname: Rossignol
authors.forename: Philippe
authors.initials: P
authors.lastname: Sebert
authors.forename: Bernard
authors.initials: B
authors.lastname: Simon
mesh_terms: D000064:Acclimatization; D000818:Animals; D004524:Eels; D004641:Emigration and Immigration; D005260:Female; D006874:Hydrostatic Pressure; D008297:Male; D015233:Models, Statistical; D009119:Muscle Contraction; D010100:Oxygen / Q000378:metabolism; D010766:Phosphorylation; D011312:Pressure; D012737:Sex Factors
chemical_list: D010100:Oxygen