Interstitial Volume Modulates the Conduction Velocity- Gap Junction Relationship

What are the parameters which modulate conduction under normal and disease conditions in the heart? This age-old debate has pitted two distinct schools of thought against each other—ephaptic conduction vs. gap junctions. Can changes in interstitial volume by pharmacological means dramatically change conduction velocity? In our latest podcast on the article by Veeraraghavan et al, Associate Editor Igor Efimov, leading expert Craig Henriquez (Duke University) and senior author Steven Poelzing (University of Utah) wade into the debate.

Rengasayee Veeraraghavan, Mohamed E. Salama, and Steven Poelzing. Interstitial volume modulates the conduction velocity-gap junction relationship. Am J Physiol Heart Circ Physiol, published ahead of print October 21, 2011, doi: 10.1152/ajpheart.00868.2011.