CARDIONECT

Cardiac Connective Tissue: Beat-by-Beat Relevance for Heart Function in Health and Disease

Coordinatore	IMPERIAL COLLEGE OF SCIENCE, TECHNOLOGY AND MEDICINE    more Spiacenti, non ci sono informazioni su questo coordinatore. Contattare Fabio per maggiori infomrazioni, grazie.
Nazionalità Coordinatore	United Kingdom [UK]
Totale costo	2˙498˙612 €
EC contributo	2˙498˙612 €
Programma	FP7-IDEAS-ERC Specific programme: "Ideas" implementing the Seventh Framework Programme of the European Community for research, technological development and demonstration activities (2007 to 2013)
Code Call	ERC-2012-ADG_20120314
Funding Scheme	ERC-AG
Anno di inizio	2013
Periodo (anno-mese-giorno)	2013-07-01   -   2018-06-30

 Partecipanti

#	participant	country	role	EC contrib. [€]
1	IMPERIAL COLLEGE OF SCIENCE, TECHNOLOGY AND MEDICINE  Organization address address: SOUTH KENSINGTON CAMPUS EXHIBITION ROAD city: LONDON postcode: SW7 2AZ contact info Titolo: Ms. Nome: Tatjana Cognome: Palalic Email: send email Telefono: +44207 594 6265	UK (LONDON)	hostInstitution	2˙498˙612.50
2	IMPERIAL COLLEGE OF SCIENCE, TECHNOLOGY AND MEDICINE  Organization address address: SOUTH KENSINGTON CAMPUS EXHIBITION ROAD city: LONDON postcode: SW7 2AZ contact info Titolo: Prof. Nome: Peter Cognome: Kohl Email: send email Telefono: +44 1895 453861 Fax: +44 1895 453807	UK (LONDON)	hostInstitution	2˙498˙612.50

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 Obiettivo del progetto (Objective)

'Cardiac connective tissue is regarded as passive in terms of cardiac electro-mechanics. However, recent evidence confirms that fibroblasts interact directly with cardiac muscle cells in a way that is likely to affect their beat-by-beat activity.

To overcome limitations of traditional approaches to exploring these interactions in native tissue, we will build and explore murine models that express functional reporters (membrane potential, Vm; calcium concentration, [Ca2]i) in fibroblasts, to identify how they are functionally integrated in native heart (myocyte => fibroblast effects). Next, we will express light-gated ion channels in murine fibroblast, to selectively interfere with their Vm (fibroblast => myocyte effects). Fibroblast-specific observation and interference will be conducted in normal and pathologically remodelled tissue, to characterise fibroblast relevance for heart function in health & disease.

Based on these studies, we will generate 2 transgenic rabbits (fibroblast Vm reporting / interfering). Rabbit cardiac structure-function is more amenable to translational work, e.g. to study fibroblast involvement in normal origin & spread of excitation across the heart, in pathological settings such as arrhythmogenicity of post-infarct scars (a leading causes of sudden death), or as a determinant of therapeutic outcomes such as in healing of atrial ablation lines (interfering with a key interventions to treat atrial fibrillation).

The final ‘blue-skies’ study will assess whether modulation of cardiac activity, from ‘tuning’ of biological pacemaker rates to ‘unpinning’ / termination of re-entrant excitation waves, can be achieved by targeting not myocytes, but fibroblasts.

The study integrates basic-science-driven discovery research into mechanisms and dynamics of biophysical myocyte-fibroblast interactions, generation of novel transgenic models useful for a broad range of studies, and elucidation of conceptually new approaches to heart rhythm management.'