Reconstruction of the electrical activity of cardiac Purkinje fibres

Abstract

1. The electrical activity of Cardiac Purkinje fibres was reconstructed using a mathematical model of the membrane current. The individual components of ionic curent were described by equations which wee based as closely as possible on previous experiments using the voltage clamp technique. 2. Membrane action potentials and pace-maker activity were calculated and compared with time course of underlying changes in two functionally distinct outeard currents, iX1 and iK2. 3. The repolarization of the theoretical action potential is triggered by the onset of iX1, which becomes activated over the plateau range of potentials. iK2 also activates during the plateau but does not play a controlling role in the repolarization. Hwever, iK2 does govern the slow pace-maker depolarization through its subsequent deactivation at negative potentials. 4. The individual phases of the calculated action potential and their 'experimental' modifications were compared with published records. The upstroke is generated by a Hodgkin-Huxley type sodium conductance (gNa), and rises with a maximum rate of 478 V/sec, somewhat less than experimentally observed values ( up to 800 V/sec). The discrepancy is discussed in relation to experimental attempts at measuring gNa. 5. The ole of the transient outward chloride current (called igr) was studied in calculations of the rapid phase of repolarization and 'notch' configuration...