Feb 10, 2020

U of T Physiology Professors Collaborate on Heart Cell Discovery in Multi-lab Study

Images of the inside of damanged heart cells

Images of the inside of damanged heart cells

Congratulations to Professors  Anthony Gramolini, Scott Heximer, and all involved in a multi-lab study of damaged heart cells. The study employed state-of-the art equipment and a novel approach to investigating the movement and reorganization of proteins in the damaged cell.

"The team discovered that, after a heart suffers damage, cardiomyocytes start to widely disperse proteins that boost calcium levels in the cell. But those proteins that remove calcium appear to cluster together in tight groups, unable to effectively function. The result is a widespread calcium overload – which can play a role in the structural remodeling of cardiomyocytes and the progression of pathological hypertrophy.

'This is an important step to understanding what is happening in cardiac hypertrophy, which hasn’t been yet considered,” says Gramolini. “This multi-lab study is a direct result of the Ted Rogers Centre, which enabled the collaborations of different experts, and has built momentum in our scientific pursuit of heart failure.'"

Read more about the study here.