Measuring Work in Single Isolated Cardiomyocytes: Replicating the Cardiac Cycle

A special webinar for basic cardiovascular researchers interested in a novel technique for measuring work output and replicating the four phases of the cardiac cycle at the single cell level.

The study of isolated cardiac myocytes provide a wealth of basic cellular and molecular information without the complications often associated with heterogeneous multicellular preparations. The overwhelming majority of data presented in myocyte studies, however, are reported in mechanically unloaded conditions. Join us for a practical demonstration of an exciting new technique where mechanical control of the cell reveals the myocyte’s force-length relationship by varying pre- and afterload to achieve isometric, isotonic, and, ultimately, work-loop style contractions analogous to the pressure-volume relationship in whole heart studies.

In this exclusive webinar sponsored by IonOptix, Michiel Helmes presents methodology and best-practices that scientists should follow in order to replicate the cardiac cycle in an isolated cardiomyocyte. He discusses how this research method can be used to better address contractile function in cardiovascular disease studies and highlight critical features of the IonOptix MyoStretcher system that are important for this emerging and novel technique.