Question

Explain Bohr effect.

Answer 1

Hint: It is related to the hemoglobin. It is inversely related with acidity.

Complete answer:
Bohr effect is considered to be a physiological phenomenon. It basically refers to the shift in the dissociation curve caused by the concentration of CO2(Carbon dioxide). It helps in increasing the efficiency of oxygen transportation through the blood.
After hemoglobin binds to oxygen in the lungs due to the high oxygen concentrations, the Bohr effect facilitates its release in the tissues, particularly those tissues that are in the most need of oxygen. When the metabolic rate of tissue increases, so does its carbon dioxide from bicarbonate and protons through the reaction. This reaction starts very slowly but due the enzyme i.e. carbonic anhydrase it increases the speed of reaction rapidly. This adversely results in decreasing the pH level of the blood. This effect enables the body to adapt to changing conditions and makes it possible to supply oxygen to the tissue that needs it.
If muscle cells will not receive enough oxygen for the cellular respiration, then it will resort to fermentation of the lactic acid, which is then released as a byproduct. This results in increasing acidity of the blood. It affects hinges around allosteric interactions between the hemes of the hemoglobin tetramer. Hemoglobin exists in 2 form R state and T state. When the oxygen concentration levels are high the lungs of the R state are favored, enabling the maximum amount of the oxygen to be bound to the hemes.

Note: It was first observed and described in 1904 by the Danish physiologist Christian Bohr. The mechanism of Bohr effect was first proposed by Max Perutz in 1970.