Ganglionated plexi and ligament of Marshall ablation reduces atrial vulnerability and causes stellate ganglion remodeling in ambulatory dogs.

Background: Simultaneous activation of the stellate ganglion (SG), the ligament of Marshall (LOM), and the ganglionated plexi often precedes the onset of paroxysmal atrial tachyarrhythmia (PAT).

Objective: The purpose of this study was to test the hypothesis that ablation of the LOM and the superior left ganglionated plexi (SLGP) reduces atrial vulnerability and results in remodeling of the SG.

Methods: Nerve activity was correlated to PAT and ventricular rate (VR) at baseline, after ablation of the LOM and SLGP, and after atrial fibrillation.

Simultaneous administration of high-dose atorvastatin and clopidogrel does not interfere with platelet inhibition during percutaneous coronary intervention.

Background: Reloading with high-dose atorvastatin shortly before percutaneous coronary interventions (PCIs) has been proposed as a strategy to reduce periprocedural myonecrosis. There has been a concern that statins that are metabolized by cytochrome P450 3A4 may interfere with clopidogrel metabolism at high doses. The impact of simultaneous administration of high doses of atorvastatin and clopidogrel on the efficacy of platelet inhibition has not been established.

Interassociation consensus statement on cardiovascular care of college student-athletes.

Cardiovascular evaluation and care of college student-athletes is gaining increasing attention from both the public and medical communities. Emerging strategies include screening of the general athlete population, recommendations of permissible levels of participation by athletes with identified cardiovascular conditions and preparation for responding to unanticipated cardiac events in athletic venues. The primary focus has been sudden cardiac death and the usefulness of screening with or without advanced cardiac screening.

Arrhythmogenic calmodulin mutations impede activation of small-conductance calcium-activated potassium current.

Background: Apamin-sensitive small-conductance calcium-activated potassium (SK) channels are gated by intracellular Ca(2+) through a constitutive interaction with calmodulin.

Objective: We hypothesize that arrhythmogenic human calmodulin mutations impede activation of SK channels.

Methods: We studied 5 previously published calmodulin mutations (N54I, N98S, D96V, D130G, and F90L).

Interassociation Consensus Statement on Cardiovascular Care of College Student-Athletes.

Cardiovascular evaluation and care of college student-athletes is gaining increasing attention from both the public and medical communities. Emerging strategies include screening of the general athlete population, recommendations of permissible levels of participation by athletes with identified cardiovascular conditions, and preparation for responding to unanticipated cardiac events in athletic venues. The primary focus has been sudden cardiac death and the utility of screening with or without advanced cardiac screening.

Translational neurocardiology: preclinical models and cardioneural integrative aspects.

Neuronal elements distributed throughout the cardiac nervous system, from the level of the insular cortex to the intrinsic cardiac nervous system, are in constant communication with one another to ensure that cardiac output matches the dynamic process of regional blood flow demand. Neural elements in their various 'levels' become differentially recruited in the transduction of sensory inputs arising from the heart, major vessels, other visceral organs and somatic structures to optimize neuronal coordination of regional cardiac function. This White Paper will review the relevant aspects of the structural and functional organization for autonomic control of the heart in normal conditions, how these systems remodel/adapt during cardiac disease, and finally how such knowledge can be leveraged in the evolving realm of autonomic regulation therapy for cardiac therapeutics.

Interassociation Consensus Statement on Cardiovascular Care of College Student-Athletes.

Cardiovascular evaluation and care of college student-athletes is gaining increasing attention from both the public and medical communities. Emerging strategies include screening of the general athlete population, recommendations of permissible levels of participation by athletes with identified cardiovascular conditions, and preparation for responding to unanticipated cardiac events in athletic venues. The primary focus has been sudden cardiac death and the utility of screening with or without advanced cardiac screening.

Prospective purification of perivascular presumptive mesenchymal stem cells from human adipose tissue: process optimization and cell population metrics across a large cohort of diverse demographics.

Background: Adipose tissue is an attractive source of mesenchymal stem cells (MSC) as it is largely dispensable and readily accessible through minimally invasive procedures such as liposuction. Until recently MSC could only be isolated in a process involving ex-vivo culture and their in-vivo identity, location and frequency remained elusive. We have documented that pericytes (CD45-, CD146+, and CD34-) and adventitial cells (CD45-, CD146-, CD34+) (collectively termed perivascular stem cells or PSC) represent native ancestors of the MSC, and can be prospectively purified using fluorescence activated cell sorting (FACS).

Epigenetic and lncRNA regulation of cardiac pathophysiology.

Our developmental studies provide an insight into the pathogenesis of heart failure in adults. These studies reveal a mechanistic link between fetal cardiomyocytes and pathologically stressed adult cardiomyocytes at the level of chromatin regulation. In embryos, chromatin-regulating factors within the cardiomyocytes respond to developmental signals to program cardiac gene expression to promote cell proliferation and inhibit premature cell differentiation.

Small conductance calcium-activated potassium current and the mechanism of atrial arrhythmia in mice with dysfunctional melanocyte-like cells.

Background: The melanin synthesis enzyme dopachrome tautomerase (Dct) regulates intracellular Ca(2+) in melanocytes. Homozygous Dct knockout (Dct(-/-)) adult mice are vulnerable to atrial arrhythmias (AA).

Objective: The purpose of this study was to determine whether apamin-sensitive small conductance Ca(2+)-activated K(+) (SK) currents are upregulated in Dct(-/-) mice and contribute to AA.

Effects of stepwise denervation of the stellate ganglion: Novel insights from an acute canine study.

Background: The stellate ganglion (SG) is important for cardiac autonomic control. SG modification is an option for treating refractory ventricular tachyarrhythmias. The optimal extent of left- and right-sided SG denervation necessary for antiarrhythmic effect, however, remains to be learned.

Epigenetic response to environmental stress: Assembly of BRG1-G9a/GLP-DNMT3 repressive chromatin complex on Myh6 promoter in pathologically stressed hearts.

Chromatin structure is determined by nucleosome positioning, histone modifications, and DNA methylation. How chromatin modifications are coordinately altered under pathological conditions remains elusive. Here we describe a stress-activated mechanism of concerted chromatin modification in the heart.

Voltage-Induced Ca²⁺ Release in Postganglionic Sympathetic Neurons in Adult Mice.

Recent studies have provided evidence that depolarization in the absence of extracellular Ca2+ can trigger Ca2+ release from internal stores in a variety of neuron subtypes. Here we examine whether postganglionic sympathetic neurons are able to mobilize Ca2+ from intracellular stores in response to depolarization, independent of Ca2+ influx. We measured changes in cytosolic ΔF/F0 in individual fluo-4 -loaded sympathetic ganglion neurons in response to maintained K+ depolarization in the presence (2 mM) and absence of extracellular Ca2+ ([Ca2+]e).

Genetic Variation of SCN5A in Korean Patients with Sick Sinus Syndrome.

Background And Objectives: Due to recent studies that have shown an association between the genetic variation of SCN5A and sick sinus syndrome (SSS), we sought to determine if a similar correlation existed in Korean patients with SSS.

Subjects And Methods: We enrolled 30 patients with SSS who showed a sinus pause (longer than 3.0 s) in Holter monitoring, in addition to 80 controls.

Exercise at the Extremes: The Amount of Exercise to Reduce Cardiovascular Events.

Habitual physical activity and regular exercise training improve cardiovascular health and longevity. A physically active lifestyle is, therefore, a key aspect of primary and secondary prevention strategies. An appropriate volume and intensity are essential to maximally benefit from exercise interventions.

Subcutaneous nerve activity and mechanisms of sudden death in a rat model of chronic kidney disease.

Background: The mechanisms of sudden death in chronic kidney disease (CKD) remain unclear.

Objective: The purpose of this study was to test the hypotheses that subcutaneous nerve activity (SCNA) can be used to estimate sympathetic tone in ambulatory rats and that abrupt reduction of SCNA precedes the spontaneous arrhythmic death of Cy/+ rats.

Methods: Radiotransmitters were implanted in ambulatory normal (N = 6) and Cy/+ (CKD; N = 6) rats to record electrocardiogram and SCNA.

Evaluation of the Genetic Basis of Familial Aggregation of Pacemaker Implantation by a Large Next Generation Sequencing Panel.

Background: The etiology of conduction disturbances necessitating permanent pacemaker (PPM) implantation is often unknown, although familial aggregation of PPM (faPPM) suggests a possible genetic basis. We developed a pan-cardiovascular next generation sequencing (NGS) panel to genetically characterize a selected cohort of faPPM.

Materials And Methods: We designed and validated a custom NGS panel targeting the coding and splicing regions of 246 genes with involvement in cardiac pathogenicity.

Intermittent left cervical vagal nerve stimulation damages the stellate ganglia and reduces the ventricular rate during sustained atrial fibrillation in ambulatory dogs.

Background: The effects of intermittent open-loop vagal nerve stimulation (VNS) on the ventricular rate (VR) during atrial fibrillation (AF) remain unclear.

Objective: The purpose of this study was to test the hypothesis that VNS damages the stellate ganglion (SG) and improves VR control during persistent AF.

Methods: We performed left cervical VNS in ambulatory dogs while recording the left SG nerve activity (SGNA) and vagal nerve activity.

AMPD1 polymorphism and response to regadenoson.

Aims:  AMPD1 c.34C > T (rs17602729) polymorphism results in AMPD1 deficiency. We examined the association of AMPD1 deficiency and variability of hemodynamic response to regadenoson.

Age-dependent alterations of voltage-gated Na(+) channel isoforms in rat sinoatrial node.

Multiple isoforms of voltage-gated Na(+) channels (NaChs) have been identified in sinoatrial node (SAN) and contribute to a rapid intrinsic heart rate. However, their roles in aging remain unclear. Here, we sought to clarify whether the age-related expression of NaChs contributes to the impaired SAN function during aging.

Genetic mutations in African patients with atrial fibrillation: Rationale and design of the Study of Genetics of Atrial Fibrillation in an African Population (SIGNAL).

Background: There is an urgent need to understand genetic associations with atrial fibrillation in ethnically diverse populations. There are no such data from sub-Saharan Africa, despite the fact that atrial fibrillation is one of the fastest growing diseases. Moreover, patients with valvular heart disease are underrepresented in studies of the genetics of atrial fibrillation.