PBL Topic 2 Case 4 Flashcards
Describe the movement of ions through the sodium potassium pump
- 3 sodium ions out
- 2 potassium ions in
What is the value of the resting potential?
- -90 mV
What occurs during depolarisation?
- Membrane becomes permeable to sodium ions
- Large numbers of sodium ions diffuse into the axon
- Reaches around +35mV
What occurs during repolarisation?
- Sodium channels close
- Membrane becomes permeable to potassium ions
- Large numbers of potassium ions diffuse into the axon
Describe the structure of a voltage gated sodium channel
- Activation (m) gate near outside of channel
- Inactivation (h) gate near inside of channel
Why is the conductance of potassium ions much greater than that of sodium ions?
- Presence of leak channels
What are intercalated discs?
- Cell membranes that separate cardiac cells from one another
- That form gap junctions
Why do intercalated discs allow easy transfer of action potentials between cells?
- Intercalated discs form gap junctions
- Allowing mostly free diffusion of ions
Why is cardiac muscle described as syncytium?
- Cardiac cells are so interconnected
- That when one cells
What causes the plateau seen in a cardiac action potential
- L-Type Calcium Channels
- Which are slower to open and remain open for longer
Which type of potassium channel is responsible for repolarisation in cardiac muscle?
- Inward rectifier channels
What is the absolute refractory period and what is its duration?
- Period in which cardiac impulse cannot re-excite an already excited area
- 0.2 to 0.3 seconds in ventricles
- 0.15 seconds in atria
What is the relative refractory period and what is its duration?
- Period in which only large impulses can re-excite an already excited area
- 0.05 seconds
What is a T tubule?
- Modified voltage-sensitive calcium channel
- Known as the dihydropyridine receptor
What occurs when an action potential passes over a T tubule?
- Calcium ions enter sarcoplasm
- Which bind to ryanodine receptors on sarcoplasmic reticulum
- Causing release of calcium into sarcoplasm
Explain how calcium ions exposure myosin binding sites
- Calcium enters myofibrils
- Calcium binds to troponin
- Troponin moves away from tropomyosin
- Exposing myosin binding site
Explain the process of power stroke
- Cross bridge head of myosin binds to active site on actin
- Head tilts forward and drags actin filament with it
- Head breaks away and process is repeated at a distant site
How is sarcoplasmic calcium concentration restored (and hence muscle relaxation)?
- Calcium-ATPase pumps
What is the cardiac cycle?
- The events that occur from the beginning of one heartbeat to the beginning of the next
Where does the cardiac cycle begin?
- Sinus node
What is the duration of the delay between the atria and ventricles and what is the purpose of this delay?
- 0.1 seconds
- Allows atria to fully contract ahead of ventricular contraction
What is the difference between systole and diastole?
- Systole refers to the period of contraction
- Diastole refers to the period of relaxation
What causes the P wave?
- Atrial depolarisation
What is the duration between the P wave and QRS complex?
- 0.16 seconds
What causes the QRS wave?
- Ventral depolarisation
What causes the T wave?
- Ventricular repolarisation
What percentage of blood flows directly into the atria?
- 80 per cent
What causes the a wave?
- Atrial contraction
What causes the c wave?
- Ventricular contraction (causing backflow of blood)
What causes the v wave?
- Ventricular relaxation (passive flow of blood into the atria)
What is meant by isometric contraction?
- Period required for ventricles to build up sufficient pressure to open semi-lunar valves?
What is the duration of isometric contraction and at what pressure do the semi-lunar valves open?
- 0.02 to 0.03 seconds
- Above 80 mm Hg
What is meant by the term rapid ejection?
- First 1/3 of ventricular contraction
- Emptying 70 per cent of ventricular volume
What is meant by isometric relaxation and what is the duration of this process?
- Period in which ventricles continue to relax even though the ventricular volume does not change
- 0.03 - 0.06 seconds
What is the value of end-diastolic volume?
- 110 - 120 ml
What is the value of the stroke volume ouptut?
- 70 ml
What is the value of the end-systolic volume?
- 50 ml
What is the ejection fraction?
- The fraction of end diastolic volume that is rejected
- Usually 60 per cent
Where is the tricuspid valve located?
- Between the right atrium and ventricle
Where is the mitral valve located?
- Between the left atrium and ventricle
Why is closure of the AV-valves described as passive?
- Backward pressure gradient forces them to close
What do the papillary muscles attach to?
- The vanes of the atrioventricular valves
- By the chordae tendinae
How do the papillary muscles prevent the budding of the valves toward the atria during ventricular contraction?
- Pull vanes of valves inward toward ventricles
Where is the aortic valve located?
- Between left ventricle and aorta
Where is the pulmonary valve located?
- Between right ventricle and pulmonary trunk
Identify four ways in which semilunar valves to A-V valves
- Snap to closed position
- Velocity of blood ejection is far greater
- Subjected to greater abrasion
- Not supported by chordae tendinae
What is meant by preload?
- Degree of tension on the muscle when it begins to contract
- Corresponds with end diastolic pressure
What is meant by afterload
- Degree of tension of the muscle against which the muscle exerts its contractile forces
- Corresponds with systolic pressure
What is the Frank-Starling mechanism?
- The greater the heart muscle is stretched during filling (end-diastolic volume) the greater the force of contraction
- The greater quantity of blood pumped into the aorta
Identify two effects of sympathetic innervation on cardiac output
- Increases the heart rate
- Increases the force of contraction
Which regions of the heart are innervated by sympathetic stimulation?
- The entire heart
Explain how sympathetic stimulation causes these changes
- Noradrenaline binds to beta-adrenergic receptors
- G proteins activate Adenylate Cyclase
- Which converts ATP to cAMP
- Which acts as a second messenger activate protein kinases
- Protein kinases phosphorylate L-type calcium channels
- Which causes influx of calcium ions for muscle contraction
How does sympathetic stimulation enhance myocyte relaxation and what is the significance of this?
- Phosphorylation of Troponin I
- Which inhibits myocyte interaction
- Myocyte is ready for next interaction more quickly
What is the role of phospholambin?
- Regulates return of calcium ions to sarcoplasmic reticulum
Which regions of the heart are innervated by the parasympathetic stimulation?
- Atria
Explain how parasympathetic stimulation causes these changes
- Acetylcholine binds to muscarinic receptors
- Negative coupling to adenylate cyclase so inhibit L-type calcium channels
- Open potassium channels and therefore have a hyper-polarising effect
Identify two effects of sympathetic innervation on cardiac output
- Decrease heart rate
- Slightly decrease force of heart contraction
What is the resting potential of the sinus node and why is this value different to that of a ventricular muscle? What is the importance of this?
- -55 to - 60 mV
- Leaky channels for sodium and calcium
- Which is responsible for self-excitation
Identify the regions of atrial tissue where conduction is rapid
- Anterior interatrial band
- Anterior, middle and posterior internodal pathways
The transmission has a delay of:
[A] after its origin in the sinus node
[B] in the A-V node
[C] in the penetrating tissue
For a total delay of [0.16’ before the signal reaches the ventricles
- [A] = 0.03
- [B] = 0.09
- [C] = 0.04
- [D] = 0.16
What causes the delay in the A-V node?
- Diminished number of gap junctions
Identify 2 reasons why Purkinje fibres transmit action potentials at high velocity
- High level of permeability of the gap junctions
- Few myofibrils so little contraction
How long is the delay between the bundle branches in the ventricular septum to the terminations of the Purkinje fibres?
- 0.03 seconds
How long is the delay between the endocardial and epicardial surfaces of the ventricles?
- 0.03 seconds