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Antarctic Cod, climate and cardiac research 30 Маrch 2004  A species of fish that lives in Antarctic waters may hold clues to climate change and lead to advances in heart medicine. Researchers from the University of Birmingham and the British Antarctic Survey (BAS) are investigating the behaviour and physiology of the 'Antarctic Cod' (Notothenia coriiceps) which became isolated from its warmer water cousins around 30 million years ago when the Antarctic Circumpolar Current was formed. The olive-coloured fish has ‘antifreeze’ in its blood and maintains a very low heart rate of less than 10 beats per minute, and almost nothing is known about its behaviour or how it evolved to live in Antarctica's extreme environment. |
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how the species may cope with predicted environmental change could help
stock management or conservation of biodiversity within the Southern
Ocean. In addition, it is possible that this research could lead to
advances in medicine, especially relating to the problems experienced by
human hearts when made to beat slowly (e.g. during surgery involving
heart-lung bypass) or fail to beat fast enough (e.g. as a result of
hypothermia in water or exposure on a mountain).
‘Climate models
predict a 2ºC rise on global sea temperatures over the next 100 years.
One of the areas that we are trying to understand is how this fish species
will respond or adapt to major environmental stresses, and how well it may
survive the predicted environmental warming.’ says Dr Keiron Fraser from
BAS. |
 Notothenia coriiceps |
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Source: British Antarctic Survey (BAS) |
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