STOREY, Kenneth B.; Carleton Univ.: Anoxia and Hypoxia: Oysters, Turtles and Beyond.

A major thrust of Peter Hochachka’s work from the early 1970’s onward was how animals functioned in low oxygen environments. Peter and his students attacked problems in hypoxia and anoxia tolerance at various levels of biology. Marine invertebrates served as models for discovery of enzymes/pathways of anaerobic metabolism and provided some of the first hints that covalent modification of enzymes could reorganize metabolism in anaerobiosis. Other animal models followed, aimed at optimal analysis of cellular control mechanisms of fuel use for aerobic/anaerobic function and exploration of the mechanisms of anoxia-induced metabolic rate depression and oxygen sensing. The “fish people” moved the study of ethanol metabolism from Friday afternoon beer garden to the anoxic survival of goldfish. International expeditions to study unique environments were arranged, most often centered around the Alpha Helix and warm, sandy beaches. Each one of Peter’s scientific brainstorms into how animals might deal with low oxygen inspired other labs around the world to take up his pioneering ideas and study the details of specific systems. His insights brought integration to a vast field of comparative and medical research on hypoxia/anoxia tolerance.