Electrical stimulation of cultured myocardial cells

This paper reports on the use of a cardiac tissue monolayer model in the investigation of some of the fundamental electrical properties of cardiac muscle. The response of cardiac tissue to increasing levels of electrical stimulus is investigated and the strength-duration curve for rectangular waveform stimulation is measured. An experimental protocol is established which provides for uniform field stimulation of the cells, and allows the cellular response (contraction) to be recorded.