Experts for electrophysiology tackle functional aspects in cardiovascular diseases

We decipher how excitable cells, cardiomyocytes and neurons, develop and communicate in normal and pathophysiological conditions. We aim to characterise the bidirectional interplay between the heart and the autonomic nervous system, thereby highlighting the role of this relationship in disease onset and progression, as well as its therapeutic potential. 

Our studies are performed either on cellular level (stable cell line H9C2, induced pluripotent stem cells-derived cardiomyocytes, acutely isolated ventricular rat/mouse cardiomyocytes) or various models available in the institute's animal facility (PTSD model, maternal depression model, SHANK3 deficient mouse model of autism, VPA induced model of autism).

Our team combines multiscale approaches in electrophysiology, ranging from single-channel studies on planar lipid membranes (BLMs) to state-of-the-art whole-cell patch-clamp techniques, to in vivo electrophysiology. To complete the picture of the cell membrane's involvement in excitability, we uniquely employ an acoustic technique, quartz crystal microbalance (QCM). These methods are combined with molecular, cellular, and behavioural approaches to characterise the mechanisms of cardiovascular pathologies.

Based on our previous and ongoing studies of catecholaminergic polymorphic ventricular tachycardia (CPVT), cardiac laminopathies, and epilepsy, we aim to address and understand the health risks associated with gender and/or gender-specific mechanisms..