Effect of parabranchial position on ventilatory pressures in the Pacific spiny dogfish (Squalus suckleyi)

The mechanics of ventilation in elasmobranchs have been described as a two-pump system which is dependent on the generation of differential pressures between the orobranchial and parabranchial cavities. However, this general model does not take into account sources of variation in parabranchial form and function. For example, the relative pressures that drive flow in each parabranchial chamber during ventilation remain largely unexplored. To address this gap, parabranchial pressures were collected from the Pacific spiny dogfish (Squalus suckleyi, n = 12) during routine ventilation using transducers inserted into parabranchial chambers 2, 3, and 5, numbered anteriorly to posteriorly. Pressure amplitudes collected from the three chambers displayed an attenuation of pressure amplitudes posteriorly, as well as differential, modular use of parabranchial chamber five These observations have implications for the functioning of the ventilatory pump and indicate distinct ventilatory modes, leading us to propose a new model to describe ventilation in Squalus suckleyi.