11 research outputs found
Assessment of contractility in intact ventricular cardiomyocytes using the dimensionless āFrankāStarling Gainā index
This paper briefly recapitulates the FrankāStarling law of the heart, reviews approaches to establishing diastolic and systolic forceālength behaviour in intact isolated cardiomyocytes, and introduces a dimensionless index called āFrankāStarling Gainā, calculated as the ratio of slopes of end-systolic and end-diastolic forceālength relations. The benefits and limitations of this index are illustrated on the example of regional differences in Guinea pig intact ventricular cardiomyocyte mechanics. Potential applicability of the FrankāStarling Gain for the comparison of cell contractility changes upon stretch will be discussed in the context of intra- and inter-individual variability of cardiomyocyte properties