Temperature, oxygen, photoperiod, and the hemoglobin system of the rainbow trout, Salmo gairdneri

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Abstract
Blood O2-carrying capacity and hemoglobin system organization were examined in rainbow trout acclimatized to eight combinations of two treatment levels of three variables: temperature (5, 20.degree. C), O2 availability ( .ltoreq. 30%, .gtoreq. 75% saturation), and photoperiod (16L:8D, 8L:16D). Increases in hemoglobin, hematocrit, and individual hemoglobin isomorph abundances were associated with hypoxia, shortened day length, and increased temperature. Under nominal "summer" conditions (20.degree. C, hypoxia, 16L:8D) photoperiod influence was apparently masked by hypoxic and thermal effects, with the converse being true under "winter" circumstances (5.degree. C, normoxia, 8L:16D). The complex, 12-membered hemoglobin system provided some evidence of differential isomorph formation during the acclimatization process. Cellular involvements remain unclear.