Integrated Phrenic Activity in Hypercapnia and Hypoxia

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Abstract
Phrenic nerve electrical activity was recorded and integrated in 14 dogs during hypercapnia without hypoxia and during hypoxia without hypercapnia. The dogs were anesthetized with intravenous pentobarbital or chloralose. In dogs anesthetized with either agent, hypercapnia primarily augmented the electrical activity of each phrenic nerve bust, while hypoxia increased burst frequency more than integrated phrenic nerve burst activity. Heart rate slowed during both hypoxia and hypercapnia. There was a small rise in systemic blood pressure with hypoxia but not with hypercapnia. When both arterial CO2 and O2 tension were kept constant, large, but not small, increases in systemic blood pressure decreased burst electrical activity. Hypoxia and hypercapnia may act on different subunits of the respiratory center.

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