Simultaneous measurement of excitation-contraction coupling parameters identifies mechanisms underlying contractile responses of hiPSC-derived cardiomyocytes.

Cardiomyocytes from human induced pluripotent stem cells (hiPSC-CMs) are increasingly recognized as valuable for determining the effects of drugs on ion channels but they do not always accurately predict contractile responses of the human heart. This is in part attributable to their immaturity but the sensitivity of measurement tools may also be limiting. Measuring action potential, calcium flux or contraction individually misses critical information that is captured when interrogating the complete excitation-contraction coupling cascade simultaneously.