The Importance of Oxygen in Animals
All living things need oxygen to survive. Oxygen is so important because it plays a key role in the breathing processes as well as in the metabolism of living organisms. Proper levels of oxygen are fundamental to support cell respiration, thus supporting life as well. Our cells create energy by burning glucose for fuel, with the aid of oxygen. The oxygen molecules are important in the chemicals reactions that turn food into energy. Oxygen is used primarily in cellular respiration. One of the products of cellular respiration is carbon dioxide. The respiratory system helps the body get rid of that carbon dioxide. While humans have lungs, fish have gills that serve as the location for that transfer of gases.
The equation of cellular respiration is C6H12O6 + 6O2 -------> 6 CO2 + 6 H2O + Energy (ATP)]. The energy is stored as ATP, three bonded phosphate groups, which are then broken to provide energy for all life processes.
In all animals, oxygen is taken in and carbon dioxide let out. Mitochondria are known as the powerhouses of the cell where the process of creating cell energy by taking in nutrients and breaking them down, also known as cellular respiration happen in the mitochondria. In mitochondria, proteins take food molecules and combine them with oxygen. After the oxygen is added, the material can be digested. They are working organelles that keep the cell full of energy. Animals need a continuous supply of oxygen. They need this continuous supply of oxygen because it obtains energy from their food. To acquire such energy from food, cells in animals require a steady supply of ATP in order to function. To produce ATP, cellular respiration requires oxygen. Without ATP, cells and the organism will die so therefore, animals need a continuous supply of oxygen to survive. Furthermore, oxygen destroys the harmful bacteria in human bodies without affecting the beneficial bacteria that we need. [1]
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Gas Exchange in the Atlantic Guitarfish
Organisms that live in the water also need a way to obtain oxygen. Oxygen dissolves in water, but at a lower concentration in comparison to the atmosphere, which has roughly 21 percent oxygen. Fish and many other aquatic organisms have evolved gills to take up the dissolved oxygen from the water. The Atlantic Guitarfish obtains oxygen like other cartilaginous fish (sharks, skates, and rays.) They breathe through 5-7 gills that are open to the ocean through slits. Water enters through the mouth and the gills. To keep the water pumping out of the gills most sharks need moving while some, like the Atlantic Guitarfish are able to keep pumping without moving. Gas exchange occurs when oxygen is transferred from the water to the blood by gills. Carbon dioxide is removed when the blood of the fish that has a high amount of waste gas and diffuses into the water.When water passes over the gills, the dissolved oxygen in the water rapidly diffuses across the gills into the bloodstream. The circulatory system can then carry the oxygenated blood to the other parts of the body. [2]