HOME HELP FEEDBACK SUBSCRIPTIONS ARCHIVE SEARCH TABLE OF CONTENTS		QUICK SEARCH:   [advanced] Author: Keyword(s): Year:  Vol:  Page:

This Article Full Text Full Text (PDF) All Versions of this Article: 295/1/H202    most recent 00877.2007v1 Alert me when this article is cited Alert me if a correction is posted Citation Map Services Email this article to a friend Similar articles in this journal Similar articles in ISI Web of Science Similar articles in PubMed Alert me to new issues of the journal Download to citation manager Citing Articles Citing Articles via HighWire Google Scholar Articles by Kroon, W. Articles by Arts, T. PubMed PubMed Citation Articles by Kroon, W. Articles by Arts, T.

Structure and torsion in the normal and situs inversus totalis cardiac left ventricle. II. Modeling cardiac adaptation to mechanical load

Departments of ¹Pediatrics, ²Physiology, and ³Biophysics, Cardiovascular Research Institute Maastricht, Maastricht University, Maastricht; and ⁴Department of Biomedical Technology, Eindhoven University of Technology, Eindhoven, The Netherlands

Submitted 26 July 2007 ; accepted in final form 16 April 2008

Mathematical models provide a suitable platform to test hypotheses on the relation between local mechanical stimuli and responses to cardiac structure and geometry. In the present model study, we tested hypothesized mechanical stimuli and responses in cardiac adaptation to mechanical load on their ability to estimate a realistic myocardial structure of the normal and situs inversus totalis (SIT) left ventricle (LV). In a cylindrical model of the LV, 1) mass was adapted in response to myofiber strain at the beginning of ejection and to global contractility (average systolic pressure), 2) cavity volume was adapted in response to fiber strain during ejection, and 3) myofiber orientations were adapted in response to myofiber strain during ejection and local misalignment between neighboring tissue parts. The model was able to generate a realistic normal LV geometry and structure. In addition, the model was also able to simulate the instigating situation in the rare SIT LV with opposite torsion and transmural courses in myofiber direction between the apex and base [Delhaas et al. (6)]. These results substantiate the importance of mechanical load in the formation and maintenance of cardiac structure and geometry. Furthermore, in the model, adapted myocardial architecture was found to be insensitive to fiber misalignment in the transmural direction, i.e., myofiber strain during ejection was sufficient to generate a realistic transmural variation in myofiber orientation. In addition, the model estimates that, despite differences in structure, global pump work and the mass of the normal and SIT LV are similar.

cardiac mechanics; myocardium; cardiac development

This article has been cited by other articles:

				T. Delhaas, W. Kroon, W. Decaluwe, M. Rubbens, P. Bovendeerd, and T. Arts Structure and torsion of the normal and situs inversus totalis cardiac left ventricle. I. Experimental data in humans Am J Physiol Heart Circ Physiol, July 1, 2008; 295(1): H197 - H201. [Abstract] [Full Text] [PDF]