Effects of exercise stress on acid-base balance and respiratory function in blood of the teleost Tinca tinca.

We measured the effects of severe, short-term exercise stress on the acid-base balance, the O2 transporting properties and the cofactors for O2 binding in the blood of tench, Tinca tinca. Short-term severe exercise resulted in a drastic decrease in arterial blood pH which is attributed to a mixed respiratory and metabolic acidosis. Concomitantly arterial PO2 rose in apparent compensation for the detrimental effects of the acidosis on O2 transport by the blood.