Mechanisms underlying cardiac alternans in a human ventricular myocyte mathematical model
Year: 2026
Type: dataset
Abstract: Cardiac alternans is a beat-to-beat oscillation in action potential duration and intracellular Ca²⁺ transients that develops at rapid heart rates and is associated with electrical instability and an increased risk of ventricular arrhythmias. The study uses a validated mathematical model of the human ventricular myocyte to dissect the relative contribution of voltage-dependent mechanisms and intracellular Ca²⁺ handling to the initiation and maintenance of alternans. In particular, the simulations examine the roles of sarcoplasmic reticulum Ca²⁺load and release, RyR2 refractoriness, and SERCA-mediated Ca²⁺ reuptake during an abrupt increase in pacing frequency. The supplementary figures and tables provide additional analyses supporting the main results and may be reused for comparison with other computational or experimental studies of cardiac excitation–contraction coupling, Ca²⁺ handling, and arrhythmogenesis.
Language: English
Subfield: Cardiology and Cardiovascular Medicine
Field: Medicine
Domain: Health Sciences
Open Access status: gold
OpenAlex ID: W7204592375