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Another trigger for the heartbeat

A. W. Trafford and D. A. Eisner

Once upon a time, excitation-contraction (E-C) coupling in the heart was beginning to look simple. Calcium ions are accumulated in the sarcoplasmic reticulum (SR) and then released through Ca²⁺ channels (the ryanodine receptor or RyR) into the cytoplasm to activate contraction. The probability that the RyRs open is increased by cytoplasmic Ca²⁺. The increase of calcium ions required to trigger the opening of the RyRs is provided by the surface membrane L-type Ca²⁺ current. The overall process is referred to as calcium-induced calcium release (CICR). Much of the original work in this field was carried out by Fabiato (e.g. Fabiato, 1985).

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