2/5 Britton Electrical and Mechanical Events of the Heart Flashcards
The prevalence of CV disease in adults over 20 years of age is:
48%
The function of the heart is essentially:
A pump for blood flow through the circulatory system
Human heart must beat ______ for one’s entire life
Regularly and continuously
Myocardium
Cardiac muscle tissue
Myocardium is composed of what types of cardiac muscle?
- Atrial
- Ventricular
- Conductive muscle fibers
Together, muscle cell types produce the:
Organized contraction of the heart
_____ generate contractile force
Atrial and ventricular myocytes
Atrial and ventricular myocytes are also known as:
- Contractile cells
- Working myocardium
Atrial and ventricular myocytes contract _____ as skeletal muscle, except:
The same way; the duration of the contraction is much longer
Conductive muscle fibers are _____ that allow for:
specialized muscle fibers; generation of AP’s; rapid conduction of AP’s
_____ contract only feebly because it contains few contractile cells
Conductive muscle fibers
Cardiac muscle cells are ____ coupled via:
Electricaly; gap junctions
Gap junctions form a _____ synapse
Electrical
Gap junctions are positioned at regions called:
Intercalated discs
Intercalated discs are unique to:
Cardiac muscle
Gap junctions allow for:
flow of electrical current and AP propagation between adjacent cells
_____ are vital for the coordinated electrical activity of cardiac muscle cells
Gap junctions
The electrical activity of the heart originates:
Within the heart itself
The heart has its own:
Auto-rhythmicity
True or false: the heart requires neural input to generate action potentials
False - does not require
Auto-rhythmicity is due to ____ cells
Pacemaker cells
Pacemaker cells are ____
Modified cardiomyocytes
Where are pacemaker cells located?
- SA node
- AV node
____ is also called the sinus node
SA node
Cardiac muscle cells either:
- exhibit automatic rhythmical electrical discharge of APs
- conduct APs through the heart
Cardiac muscles have an _____ difference across the cell membrane, termed _____
Electrical potential; resting membrane potential
In a ventricular cell, resting membrane potential is:
-90 mV
RMP of cardiac cell is close to:
Ek (equilibrium potential for K+)
Resting membrane potential is determined by:
- the concentration of ions across the cell membrane
- relative permeability of the cell membrane to these ions (if selective ions are open or closed)
- membrane pumps that transport ions across the cell membrane and maintain ionic gradients
Ion pumps and exchangers on the cardiac cell membrane maintain ____ for Na+, K+, Ca2+
ionic gradients
Ion pumps associated with cardiac cell electrophysiology
- Na+/K+ ATPase (3:2)
- PMCA (plasma membrane Ca2+ ATPase)
- NCX (Na+/Ca2+ exchanger, 3:1)
During each cardiac cycle, what happens?
Na+, K+, Ca2+ ions move back and forth across the cardiomyocyte cell membrane (thereby changing Vm)
Cardiac APs occur when:
Membrane potential depolarizes and then repolarizes back to its resting state (similar to neuronal APs)
APs occur in ____ cardiac cell types, but the appearance ____ depending on the cell type
All; varies
What are the two types of cardiac APs?
- Myocardium (non-pacemaker AP)
- SA node (pacemaker AP)
Non-pacemaker AP is triggered by:
Depolarizing current from adjacent muscle cells
Pacemaker cells are capable of:
Spontaneous AP generation
An AP is a recording of:
Cell’s membrane potential versus time
What are the 5 phases of myocardium action potentials?
- Depolarization
- Brief repolarization
- Plateau
- Rapid repolarization
- RMP
What is the duration of a myocardium action potential?
200-400 msec (roughly how long the contraction lasts)
Cardiac AP is largely dominated by the movement of:
Na+, Ca2+, K+ ions
Myocardium action potentials
Phase 0
- Upstroke/rapid depolarization
- Na+ channels open
- Membrane potential shifts into positive voltage range
Myocardium action potentials
Phase 1
- early repolarization
- K+ channels open
- sets the potential for phase 2
Myocardium action potentials
Phase 2
- Ca2+ channels open
- K+ channels are still open
- long phase marks the entry of Ca2+ into the cell
Myocardium action potentials
Phase 3
- rapid repolarization
- Additional K+ channels open
- Membrane potential returning to its resting value
Myocardium action potentials
Phase 4
Stable at -90 mV in myocardium
How do ion channels make the cardiac cell membrane permeable to ions?
- selective for particular ions
- open and closed states
- exhibit gating properties (voltage/ligand gated)
The phases of the AP are the result of:
Ion movement down their electrochemical gradients (established by active pumps and exchangers)
The cardiac AP reflects the ____ behavior of numerous individual ____ and their ____
Integrated; ion channels; ionic currents
____ always precedes muscle contraction
AP
Long AP duration allows:
- cardiac muscle to contract for this same long period
- heart chambers to fully contract and eject blood
Features of APs in cardiac myocytes
- Cardiac AP has a long duration
- Cardiac AP has a plateau
- have refractory periods
____ are largely responsible for the plateau portion
Voltage-gated Ca2+ channels
Voltage gated K+ channels in cardiac myocyte membranes are ____ to open
Slower than usual (delayed repolarization of membrane potential)
Interval of time during which cardiac cells are unexcitable to the initiation of a new AP
Refractory period
Cardiac cells are refractory during AP phases ____, termed the ____
0, 1, 2, part of 3; effective refractory period (ERP)
ERP of ventricular AP is ___ msec
200 (approximately the duration of the AP)
ERP occurs due to:
Na+ channels remain inactivated following channel closing during phase 1
____ is a protective mechanism in the heart, prevents multiple APs from occurring
ERP
Relative refractory period
Interval of time during which a 2nd AP can be initiated with a greater stimulus than before
What are afterdepolarizations?
Depolarizations of muscle cells during the AP
When do afterdepolarizations occur?
Can occur in the relative refractory period if amplitude of depolarization is large enough to reach threshold
Afterdepolarizations must be preceded by at least ____, thus the term _____ is used
One AP; Triggered activity
True or false: afterdepolarizations occur spontaneously
False - they are triggered by prior activation of the heart (previous AP)
Early afterdepolarizations may occur spontaneously in patients with ______
Congenital long QT syndrome (LQTS) due to defective K+ channels