Optogenetic Suppression of Early After-depolarisations in a Computational Model of the Human Heart

The heart beats an incredible 2-3 billion times in one’s lifetime. This amazing feat is made possible by highly organised electrical signals passing through the heart tissue. Disturbances of the heart’s electrical activity (known as ‘arrhythmias’) can be deadly, as they impair its ability to pump blood to the body. While various treatments for the prevention or termination of arrhythmias exist, they generally lack in effectiveness and are often associated with harmful side effects, so the development of new therapies is needed. One new technology of interest for treating arrhythmias is proteins that are activated by light, which can be used to control the heart’s electrical activity. The goal of the propose project is to explore the potential for using these light-activated proteins for the prevention of deadly cardiac arrhythmias through computational simulations in a mathematical model of the human heart, to complement my ongoing experimental studies in isolated zebrafish hearts and advance its clinical relevancy.

Faculty Supervisor:

Alex Quinn

Student:

Partner:

University of Washington

Discipline:

Life Sciences

Sector:

Education

University:

Dalhousie University

Program: