Optoelectronic cardiac rhythm control: a translational exploration

Abstract

Cardiac tachyarrhythmias represent a significant global health burden, affecting millions and contributing extensively to cardiovascular morbidity and mortality. Despite advancements, current treatment options face significant limitations, driving the need for innovative, patient-friendly solutions. Beyond utilizing the heart’s natural bioelectricity for diagnostic purposes, such as the recording of an electrocardiogram, one can hypothesize that the heart’s ability to generate bioelectric signals may also be utilized for therapeutic purposes. This concept of arrhythmia termination using the heart’s bioelectricity could theoretically be realized by the properly timed generation of endogenous currents through optogenetics.

This thesis explores the feasibility of this novel approach, investigating how the intact heart’s bioelectric properties can be leveraged for arrhythmia termination in animal models of atrial and ventricular tachyarrhythmias.