This article analyzes the events, which motivated the research for a biochemical-physiological character, the cloricia in amphibians, by two Argentine researchers: Dr. Cabello Ruz and Dr. A. Barrio. Ruz was interested in the processes related to the metabolism of hemo group of the oxygen-carrying molecule hemoglobin, a process that was not completely known in 1950, when he studied it. Barrio conducted research in the area of zoology focusing on amphibians and reptiles. Our historical thesis intends to show how one physiological fact of medical research was co-opted for a new use, to paraphrase a term of evolutionary theory, in the field of herpetology the branch of zoology that deals with both the classification and the analysis of the biology of amphibians and reptiles proposing to present a coherent and historical narrative of concepts, experiences and theories that guided the research process.
Cloricia; Amphibians; Frogs; Exaptation; Physiology systematic