Bioengineering Aspects in the Design of Gas Exchangers Comparative E
This book encapsulates over three decades of the author’s work on comparative functional respiratory morphology. It provides insights into the mechanism(s) by which respiratory means and processes originated and advanced to their modern states. Pertinent
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John N. Maina
Bioengineering Aspects in the Design of Gas Exchangers Comparative Evolutionary, Morphological, Functional, and Molecular Perspectives
Prof.Dr. John N. Maina University of Johannesburg Department of Zoology Auckland Park Kingsway Campus 233 2006 Johannesburg South Africa [email protected]
ISBN 978-3-642-20394-7 e-ISBN 978-3-642-20395-4 DOI 10.1007/978-3-642-20395-4 Springer Heidelberg Dordrecht London New York Library of Congress Control Number: 2011931728 # Springer-Verlag Berlin Heidelberg, 2011 This work is subject to copyright. All rights are reserved, whether the whole or part of the material is concerned, specifically the rights of translation, reprinting, reuse of illustrations, recitation, broadcasting, reproduction on microfilm or in any other way, and storage in data banks. Duplication of this publication or parts thereof is permitted only under the provisions of the German Copyright Law of September 9, 1965, in its current version, and permission for use must always be obtained from Springer. Violations are liable to prosecution under the German Copyright Law. The use of general descriptive names, registered names, trademarks, etc. in this publication does not imply, even in the absence of a specific statement, that such names are exempt from the relevant protective laws and regulations and therefore free for general use. Cover design: deblik, Berlin, Germany Printed on acid-free paper Springer is part of Springer Science+Business Media (www.springer.com)
This book is dedicated to my family, friends, and past and present students.
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The Lord God formed man from the dust of the ground and breathed into his nostrils the breath of life, and the man became a living being. Genesis 2:7 (King James Version)
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Preface
This book was written with a broad readership in mind. Students as well as working biologists in the fields of physiology, morphology, zoology, evolutionary biology, and ecology, especially those interested in or who are actively engaged in the area of comparative respiratory biology will particularly find it of significance. Scientists in the fields of Earth Sciences who are interested in how the physical world has interacted and influenced the biological one and therefore determined the development of life forms, states, and physiological processes will find the book interesting and hopefully stimulating. A section of the treatise deals with the origin, the dynamics, and the physicochemical properties of the respiratory gases and fluid media, with specific focus on molecular oxygen (O2). By designating O2 as “the molecule that made the world” and observing that “if water is the foundation of life, then oxygen is its engine,” Lane (2002) absolutely summed it up. Large-scale anoxia and hypoxia, especially in the oceans, is commonly cited as having been the foremost driver of mass extinctions as well as a long-term limiting factor of evolutionary radiation of life on the early Earth, particularly during the Cambrian. Insights into the mechanism(s) of the inauguration
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