Examining the Effect of Introducing a Link From Electrical Excitation to Calcium Dynamics in a Cardiomyocyte

Abstract

Calcium dysregulation is a significant cause of fatal cardiac arrythmias, but it is an incompletely understood phenomenon and difficult to predict. Cardiac calcium levels can be modeled as a system of partial differential equations linking the electrical excitation, calcium signaling, and mechanical contraction dynamics of the heart. A complete calcium induced calcium release model uses reaction-diffusion equations to fully link these three systems. Simulations examine the effect of introducing the link from calcium signaling to electrical excitation. In particular, we perform a parameter study on the strength of the feedback connection with both links between calcium signaling and electrical excitation enabled. Simulations indicate that the feedback and feedforward between electrical excitation and calcium signaling can influence the voltage in a physiologically realistic way.