Beat-by-Beat Cardiomyocyte T-Tubule Deformation Drives Tubular Content Exchange

Abstract

Our data confirm the existence of an advective component to TT content exchange. This points toward a novel mechanism of cardiac autoregulation, whereby the previously implied increased propensity for TT luminal concentration imbalances at high electrical stimulation rates would be countered by elevated advection-assisted diffusion at high mechanical beating rates. The relevance of this mechanism in health and during pathological remodeling (eg, cardiac hypertrophy or failure) forms an exciting target for further research.