What is the effect of oxygen levels on the hemoglobin synthesis and coloration of Daphnia magna?
Background Research
Daphnia are small organisms and are sometimes known as the water flea. Some of the most common species of Daphnia are D. magna and D. pulex. When found in lakes and ponds, Daphnia are known to help filter the ecosystem. They are mostly found in lakes and ponds. They create a well balanced ecosystem by being the prey of amphibians and small water insects and eating algae found in ponds and lakes. When there is not Daphnia present in lakes and ponds, an increase of algae and decrease of fish can be seen. Because of their sensitivity to the surroundings and its transparent carcass, when Daphnia are in hypoxic conditions, more hemoglobin is produced and they appear red. Hypoxic is when the body or part of the body is lacking adequate oxygen supply. This red color can be seen about
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The control to this experiment would be a open container with the same amount of Daphnia and observed for the same amount of time. There would also be a container with certain levels of oxygen concentration that would be observed. The independent variable of this experiment is the oxygen concentration in which the Daphnia will be placed in and the dependent variable of the experiment is the hemoglobin produced in the Daphnia. It takes an estimated two to three days for daphnia in hypoxic conditions to appear red, so the colors of the organisms would be observed for multiple days in order to see the whole process of hemoglobin synthesis in Daphnia. The effect of oxygen concentration on the hemoglobin produced in Daphnia will be tested by placing saran wrap over the petri dish in which the Daphnia live in with varying amounts of openings and measuring the amount of Daphnia that appear red due to the hemoglobin produced in it’s