Atrial reverse remodeling: restitution of early tachycardia-induced alterations of atrial ion currents after termination of rapid atrial pacing in rabbits.

Background And Purpose: Studies report on the reversal of electrophysiological parameters altered by atrial tachycardia after cessation of the latter. However, there is no data concerning reversal of tachycardia-induced alterations of ion currents. Reverse remodeling of atrial ion currents (I(Ca,L), I(to), I(sus)) was studied in our rabbit model of tachycardia-induced electrical remodeling.

Effects of selective mineralocorticoid receptor antagonism on atrial ion currents and early ionic tachycardia-induced electrical remodelling in rabbits.

Over the past years, the importance of the renin-angiotensin-aldosterone system in atrial fibrillation (AF) pathophysiology has been recognised. Lately, the role of aldosterone in AF pathophysiology and mineralocorticoid receptor (MR) antagonism in "upstream" AF treatment is discussed. Hypothesising that selective MR antagonism might also influence atrial ion currents (L-type calcium current [I (Ca,L)], transient outward potassium current [I (to)], sustained outward potassium current [I (sus)]) and their tachycardia-induced remodelling, the effects of an eplerenone treatment were studied in a rabbit model.