Biological Physics Group, School of Physics & Astronomy, The University of Manchester, Manchester, United Kingdom.
School of Computer Science and Technology, Harbin Institute of Technology, Harbin, China.
PLoS Comput Biol. 2018 Nov 30;14(11):e1006594. doi: 10.1371/journal.pcbi.1006594. eCollection 2018 Nov.
Cardiac electrical alternans (CEA), manifested as T-wave alternans in ECG, is a clinical biomarker for predicting cardiac arrhythmias and sudden death. However, the mechanism underlying the spontaneous transition from CEA to arrhythmias remains incompletely elucidated. In this study, multiscale rabbit ventricular models were used to study the transition and a potential role of INa in perpetuating such a transition. It was shown CEA evolved into either concordant or discordant action potential (AP) conduction alternans in a homogeneous one-dimensional tissue model, depending on tissue AP duration and conduction velocity (CV) restitution properties. Discordant alternans was able to cause conduction failure in the model, which was promoted by impaired sodium channel with either a reduced or increased channel current. In a two-dimensional homogeneous tissue model, a combined effect of rate- and curvature-dependent CV broke-up alternating wavefronts at localised points, facilitating a spontaneous transition from CEA to re-entry. Tissue inhomogeneity or anisotropy further promoted break-up of re-entry, leading to multiple wavelets. Similar observations have also been seen in human atrial cellular and tissue models. In conclusion, our results identify a mechanism by which CEA spontaneously evolves into re-entry without a requirement for premature ventricular complexes or pre-existing tissue heterogeneities, and demonstrated the important pro-arrhythmic role of impaired sodium channel activity. These findings are model-independent and have potential human relevance.
心脏电交替(CEA),表现在心电图上为 T 波交替,是预测心律失常和猝死的临床生物标志物。然而,CEA 自发转变为心律失常的机制仍不完全清楚。在这项研究中,使用多尺度兔心室模型研究了这种转变以及 INa 在维持这种转变中的潜在作用。研究表明,在均匀的一维组织模型中,CEA 可演变为一致或不一致的动作电位(AP)传导交替,这取决于组织 AP 持续时间和传导速度(CV)恢复特性。不一致的交替能够导致模型中的传导失败,这是由于钠通道功能障碍,无论是通道电流减少还是增加,都会促进这种失败。在二维均匀组织模型中,速率和曲率依赖性 CV 的联合作用会在局部点打断交替的波阵面,促进 CEA 向折返的自发转变。组织非均质性或各向异性进一步促进折返的中断,导致多个小波。在人类心房细胞和组织模型中也观察到了类似的现象。总之,我们的研究结果确定了一种机制,通过这种机制,CEA 可以在没有提前性室性搏动或预先存在的组织异质性的情况下自发地演变为折返,并且证明了受损钠通道活性的重要致心律失常作用。这些发现是模型独立的,具有潜在的人类相关性。