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First published online January 3, 2006
Journal of Experimental Biology 209, 314-319 (2006)
Published by The Company of Biologists 2006
doi: 10.1242/jeb.01984
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The effect of elevated hydrostatic pressure on the spectral absorption of deep-sea fish visual pigments

J. C. Partridge1,*, E. M. White1 and R. H. Douglas2

1 School of Biological Sciences, University of Bristol, Woodland Road, Bristol BS8 1UG, UK
2 Applied Vision Research Centre, The Henry Wellcome Laboratories for Vision Sciences, Department of Optometry and Visual Science, City University, Northampton Square, London EC1V OHB, UK

* Author for correspondence (e-mail: j.c.partridge{at}bristol.ac.uk)

Accepted 14 November 2005

The effect of hydrostatic pressure (0.1-54 MPa, equivalent to pressures experienced by fish from the ocean's surface to depths of ca. 5400 m) on visual pigment absorption spectra was investigated for rod visual pigments extracted from the retinae of 12 species of deep-sea fish of diverse phylogeny and habitat. The wavelength of peak absorption ({lambda}max) was shifted to longer wavelengths by an average of 1.35 nm at 40 MPa (a pressure approximately equivalent to average ocean depth) relative to measurements made at one atmosphere (ca. 0.1 MPa), but with little evidence of a change in absorbance at the {lambda}max. We conclude that previous {lambda}max measurements of deep-sea fish visual pigments, made at a pressure close to 0.1 MPa, provide a good indication of {lambda}max values at higher pressures when considering the ecology of vision in the deep-sea. Although not affecting the spectral sensitivity of the animal to any important degree, the observed shift in {lambda}max may be of interest in the context of understanding opsin-chromophore interaction and spectral tuning of visual pigments.

Key words: visual pigment, retina, deep-sea fish, pressure






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