group-oxyheme interaction energy being RT ln ,3 = 820 cal./mole. The total oxyheme-oxyheme interaction energy is about 6000 cal./mole, and the total acid group-oxyheme interaction energy is about 6600 cal./mole. The none too exact experiments on the carbon monoxide equilibrium and the carbon monoxide-oxygen balance of hemoglobin suggest that the interactions a and ,B are effective for carboxyhe...

Blood nicotine, cotinine, and carboxyhaemoglobin (COHb) concentrations were measured in 392 smokers (255 women and 137 men) of "middle tar" (17-22 mg), "low to middle" (11-16 mg), and "low tar" (less than 11 mg) cigarettes. Since tar intake cannot yet be measured directly, we devised an index to estimate it based on the use of measured levels of an intake marker (eg, blood nicotine) and the rat...

The currently recommended prehospital treatment for carbon monoxide (CO) poisoning is administration of 100% O(2). We have shown in dogs that normocapnic hyperpnea with O(2) further accelerates CO elimination. The purpose of this study was to examine the relation between minute ventilation (V E) and the rate of elimination of CO in humans. Seven healthy male volunteers were exposed to CO (400 t...

A significantly greater rise in carboxyhaemoglobin concentration in response to smoking a single cigarette was shown in pregnant (3-9% increase) as opposed to non-pregnant (2-1% increase) women. This was more pronounced when anaemia was present (5-0% increase) and appeared to be inversely related to the haemoglobin concentration. We suggest that the risks to the fetus may be particularly increa...

The rates at which people smoke cigarettes during different periods of the day were obtained from three occupational groups. Group 1 consisted of those working at the main London production site of a food processing factory, Group 2 consisted of those in the administrative offices of the same company; there are smoking restrictions at both. Group 3 consisted of workers in the offices of a Londo...

Because the published data concerning the effects of smoking on visual sensitivity at night are inconsistent, a new study was initiated to obtain ground level comparison data from smoking and nonsmoking Army aviators. Blood samples also were analyzed to compare serum levels of nicotine, cotinine, and carboxyhemoglobin with the visual measures. The present data show no differences in visual sens...

About 0-01 ml. of blood taken from a finger prick is dissolved in 10 ml. of 0-04% ammonia solution. The solution is divided into two halves, and oxygen is bubbled through one half to convert any carboxyhaemoglobin into oxyhaemoglobin. The spectra of the two halves are then compared in a spectrophotometer, and the difference between them is used to estimate the carboxyhaemoglobin content of the ...

Burgeoning evidence of the formidable mortality consequences of cigarette smoking has motivated life insurers to offer lower premiums to non-smokers. With widely-advertised nonsmoker discounts also available on propertycasualty and health insurance products, the alert consumer is now aware of the economic advantage of being a non-user of cigarettes, even if only temporarily (i.e., when the agen...

Low concentrations of endogenous carbon monoxide (CO), generated primarily through degradation of heme from heme-proteins, have been shown to maintain physiological function of organs and to exert cytoprotective effects. However, high concentrations of carboxyhemoglobin (COHb), formed by CO binding to hemoglobin, potentially prevent adequate O2 delivery to tissues by lowering arterial O2 conten...

Carboxyhemoglobin alters the oxyhemoglobin dissociation curve in such a manner that oxygen is released to the tissues with great difficulty and at a lower oxygen tension. The known effects on heart and brain of breathing low concentrations of carbon monoxide are primarily related to this leftward shift and perhaps also to its combination with myoglobin and certain iron-contain­ ing enzymes. Hem...