Sinus node-like pacemaker mechanisms regulate ectopic pacemaker activity in the adult rat atrioventricular ring.

ABSTRACT: In adult mammalian hearts, atrioventricular rings (AVRs) surround the atrial orifices of atrioventricular valves and are hotbed of ectopic activity in patients with focal atrial tachycardia. Experimental data offering mechanistic insights into initiation and maintenance of ectopic foci is lacking. We aimed to characterise AVRs in structurally normal rat hearts, identify arrhythmia predisposition and investigate mechanisms underlying arrhythmogenicity. Extracellular potential mapping and intracellular action potential recording techniques were used for electrophysiology, qPCR for gene and, Western blot and immunohistochemistry for protein expression. Conditions favouring ectopic foci were assessed by simulations. In right atrial preparations, sinus node (SN) was dominant and AVRs displayed

SUBMITTER: Logantha SJRJ 

PROVIDER: S-EPMC6692414 | biostudies-literature | 2019 Aug

REPOSITORIES: biostudies-literature