In intact hearts, mutated RyR2s are functionally normal at rest but display a high degree of synchronized Ca2+ release variability upon intense adrenergic stimulation.
In a murine model of CPVT, mutated RyR2 channels function normally at rest but display significant, synchronized Ca2+ release variability upon adrenergic stimulation due to electrical defects.
BACKGROUND: Catecholaminergic polymorphic ventricular tachycardia is directly linked to mutations in proteins (eg, type 2 ryanodine receptor RyR2(R4496C)) responsible for intracellular Ca(2+) homeostasis in the heart. However, the mechanism of Ca(2+) release dysfunction underlying catecholaminergic polymorphic ventricular tachycardia has only been investigated in isolated cells but not in the in situ undisrupted myocardium. METHODS AND RESULTS: We investigated in situ myocyte Ca(2+) dynamics in intact Langendorff-perfused hearts (ex vivo) from wild-type and RyR2(R4496C+/-) mice using laser scanning confocal microscopy. We found that myocytes from both wild-type and RyR2(R4496C+/-) hearts displayed uniform, synchronized Ca(2+) transients. Ca(2+) transients from beat to beat were comparable in amplitude with identical activation and decay kinetics in wild-type and RyR2(R4496C+/-) hearts, suggesting that excitation-contraction coupling between the sarcolemmal Ca(2+) channels and mutated RyR2(R4496C+/-) channels remains intact under baseline resting conditions. On adrenergic stimulation, RyR2(R4496C+/-) hearts exhibited a high degree of Ca(2+) release variability. The varied pattern of Ca(2+) release was absent in single isolated myocytes, independent of cell cycle length, synchronized among neighboring myocytes, and correlated with catecholaminergic polymorphic ventricular tachycardia. A similar pattern of action potential variability, which was synchronized among neighboring myocytes, was also revealed under adrenergic stress in intact hearts but not in isolated myocytes. CONCLUSIONS: Our studies using an in situ confocal imaging approach suggest that mutated RyR2s are functionally normal at rest but display a high degree of Ca(2+) release variability on intense adrenergic stimulation. Ca(2+) release variability is a Ca(2+) release abnormality, resulting from electric defects rather than the failure of the Ca(2+) release response to action potentials in mutated ventricular myocytes. Our data provide important insights into Ca(2+) release and electric dysfunction in an established model of catecholaminergic polymorphic ventricular tachycardia.
Chen et al. (Fri,) conducted a other in Catecholaminergic polymorphic ventricular tachycardia. RyR2(R4496C+/-) mutation and adrenergic stimulation vs. Wild-type mice was evaluated on Ca2+ release variability and action potential variability. In intact hearts, mutated RyR2s are functionally normal at rest but display a high degree of synchronized Ca2+ release variability upon intense adrenergic stimulation.