Computers in Biology and Medicine
Volume 38, Issue 11 , Pages 1140-1151, November 2008

Tachycardia-induced early afterdepolarizations: Insights into potential ionic mechanisms from computer simulations

  • Ray B. Huffaker

      Affiliations

    • Department of Computer Science, University of California, 405 Hilgard Avenue, Los Angeles, CA 90095-1596, USA
    • ,
  • Richard Samade

      Affiliations

    • Department of Bioengineering, University of California, Los Angeles, USA
    • ,
  • James N. Weiss

      Affiliations

    • Cardiovascular Research Laboratory, Department of Medicine (Cardiology), David Geffen School of Medicine at UCLA, Los Angeles, CA, USA
    • ,
  • Boris Kogan

      Affiliations

    • Department of Computer Science, University of California, 405 Hilgard Avenue, Los Angeles, CA 90095-1596, USA
    • Corresponding Author InformationCorresponding author. Tel.: +13108257393; fax: +13108252273.

Received 10 January 2008; accepted 13 August 2008.

Abstract 

Although early afterdepolarizations (EADs) are classically thought to occur at slow heart rates, mounting evidence suggests that EADs may also occur at rapid heart rates produced by tachyarrhythmias, due to Ca overload of the sarcoplasmic reticulum (SR) leading to spontaneous SR Ca release. We hypothesized that the mechanism of tachycardia-induced EADs depends on the spatial and temporal morphology of spontaneous SR Ca release, and tested this hypothesis in computer simulations using a ventricular action potential mathematical model. Using two previously suggested spontaneous release morphologies, we found two distinct tachycardia-induced EAD mechanisms: one mechanistically similar to bradycardia-induced EADs, the other to delayed afterdepolarizations (DADs).

Keywords: Early afterdepolarizations, Spontaneous release, Tachyarrhythmias, Computer simulation, Mathematical modeling

To access this article, please choose from the options below

Login to an existing account or Register a new account.

  • Purchase this article for 31.50 USD (You must login/register to purchase this article)

    Online access for 24 hours. The PDF version can be downloaded as your permanent record.

  • Subscribe to this title

    Get unlimited online access to this article and all other articles in this title 24/7 for one year.

  • Claim access now

    For current subscribers with Society Membership or Account Number.

  • Visit SciVerse ScienceDirect to see if you have access via your institution.
 

PII: S0010-4825(08)00123-6

doi:10.1016/j.compbiomed.2008.08.010

Computers in Biology and Medicine
Volume 38, Issue 11 , Pages 1140-1151, November 2008

Article Tools

* Image Usage & Resolution