High resolution immunostaining image of the human sinoatrial nodeVADIM FEDOROV, THE OHIO STATE UNIVERSITY WEXNER MEDICAL CENTER
In humans, the heart’s sinoatrial node (SAN), acts as the body’s pacemaker. A new study, published Wednesday (July 26) in Science Translational Medicine, reports two backup mechanisms that may prevent heart failure when the organ is faced with arrhythmia.
“This is the first step in explaining why the SAN can be ‘sluggish’ for years before a total failure, allowing the clinician to detect the problem before a catastrophic event,” study coauthor Raul Weiss, a cardiologist and researcher at Ohio State University, says in a statement.
Weiss and colleagues used a variety of techniques, including 3D tissue reconstruction and molecular characterization, on samples from 21 donated human hearts. To observe heart function, the team placed live tissue into glass chambers filled with an oxygenated solution and ...
