O2-sensitive chemoreceptors

Postnatal Maturation of the Carotid Chemoreceptor O2 Sensitivity at the Cellular Level... 

Neurotransmitter Modulation of Type I Cell [Ca +]i Response As noted above, several studies suggest that dopaminergie modulation of carotid chemoreceptor O2 sensitivity ehanges with age. We therefore studied the effects of the D2 receptor agonist quinpirole (QP) on type I cell [Ca " i responses to hypoxia... 

Fetal sheep carotid sinus nerve (13) and fetal rat type I cell [Ca ]i (68) responses to hypoxia are weak compared to mature postnatal responses. The consensus view is that carotid chemoreceptor O2 sensitivity is suppressed or adapted to the normally low Pa02 of the mammalian fetal environment ( 23-27 mmHg). Nature s design makes sense, from a teleological perspective to disable carotid chemoreceptor... 

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