BRAINCAKEThe Bohr Effect
The Bohr effect is the decrease in the affinity of haemoglobin for oxygen when the partial pressure of carbon dioxide (pCO2) is high. On a graph, a higher pCO2 shifts the oxygen dissociation curve to the right.
How it happens: in respiring tissues, cells produce carbon dioxide. CO2 diffuses into red blood cells, where the enzyme carbonic anhydrase converts it to carbonic acid, which dissociates into hydrogen ions (H+) and hydrogencarbonate ions. The H+ ions bind to haemoglobin, forming haemoglobinic acid. This changes the shape of haemoglobin, reducing its affinity for oxygen, so oxyhaemoglobin releases more oxygen.
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Key terms in this lesson
- partial pressure
- The pressure that a particular gas in a mixture would exert if it alone occupied the whole volume.
More in Transport in Animals
- Haemoglobin
- Oxygen Loading and Unloading
- The Oxygen Dissociation Curve
- Partial Pressure of Oxygen
- Fetal Haemoglobin
- Transport of Carbon Dioxide
- Carbonic Anhydrase
- Haemoglobinic Acid
All 32 lessons in Transport in Animals · All OCR AS-level Biology topics