Biophysical properties of slow potassium channels in human embryonic stem cell derived cardiomyocytes implicate subunit stoichiometry

摘要

Non-technical summaryThe human heart is a pump that works only when its internal electrical system coordinates both its filling and its capacity to eject blood. This critical electrical timing is coordinated by many different ion channels, and this study looks at the one known as IKs. Mutations in its α subunit, KCNQ1, constitute the majority of cases of the disorder long QT syndrome (LQT-1). Here we have examined properties of human cardiac cells during very early stages of development and found evidence for the manner in which the subunits of IKs assemble; our data suggest that this assembly may be flexible and may change during development and/or disease.