Engineered human heart tissue shows Stanford Medicine researchers the mechanics of tachycardia

Researchers engineered stem cell-derived heart tissues to study how tachycardia affects the heart and to uncover the inner workings of our body’s engine.

When beating normally, the heart uses fat as an energy source, but breaking down fats requires a lot of oxygen. Without oxygen, the heart’s fuel source switches to sugar in a process called metabolic rewiring. The fuel switch and hypoxia, or lack of oxygen, contribute to a decrease in the NAD/NADH ratio, a vital chemical duo that helps maintain the function of a protein in heart tissue known as SERCA.

“Varying levels of the SERCA protein act like a gas and brake pedal for a car,” Tu said. When researchers increase the amount of NAD, the heart’s gas pedal is thrusted, and the SERCA protein strengthens the heartbeat of the engineered cells. When decreased, the engineered heart tissues hit the brakes, making them beat more weakly.

https://med.stanford.edu/news/all-news/2023/12/heart-tissue-tachycardia.html