Fixing the heart’s electrical wiring system to prevent abnormal heart rhythms and heart failure

Control of ion channel expression in the cardiac conduction system in disease - search for potential new therapeutic targets (renewal)

The heart has an electrical wiring system called the ‘cardiac conduction system’ (CCS), which is responsible for the start and coordination of each heartbeat. When this system goes wrong it results in a slow heart rate – a type of arrhythmia, which can be life-threatening. This system also gradually deteriorates as we get older, and it’s the main cause of death in people with heart failure. Professor Boyett’s programme aims to understand CCS disease at the molecule-level, with a view to developing new ways to treat it. After several decades of BHF-funded research, it is now known that molecules called ion channels are affected when the CCS deteriorates. Professor Boyett’s new research aims to identify the different molecules and processes that drive changes to the ion channels during heart failure and ageing. As problems with the CCS system mainly occur at night, he will also look at ion channels in relation to our circadian rhythms. The molecules the team find are likely to be regulatory molecules that control ion channel function by influencing the genes that code for them. Once they know the key molecules, Professor Boyett hopes to design a gene therapy to correct the problem in people. For the first time this work will offer the prospect of new treatments directed at what causes the CCs to fail.