Scientists have developed a “virtual heart” that could help medical researchers study new drug therapies for heart failure.
A team of researchers created a detailed computational model of the electrophysiology of congestive heart failure, a leading cause of death.
The model created by researchers from the University of California can simulate subtle changes from the cellular and tissue levels of the heart, up to the whole heart itself, then show the results of the associated electrocardiogram (ECG), a common tool that helps doctors diagnose heart abnormalities.
At the cellular and tissue levels, the model can show what happens to the heart when the levels and flow of calcium, potassium and sodium ions are changed. It also can take into account the speed at which a cell’s ion channels, which take in those ions, work at.