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Related Concept Videos

Structure of Cardiac Muscles01:13

Structure of Cardiac Muscles

Cardiac muscle, or myocardium, is a specialized type of muscle found exclusively in the heart. Its unique structural and functional characteristics enable the heart to perform its vital role of pumping blood throughout the body continuously and rhythmically. The cardiac muscle cells, or cardiomyocytes, possess an endomysium and perimysium but do not have an epimysium.
Compared to skeletal muscles, cardiac muscle cells are small and mostly have a single nucleus. Additionally, they are usually...
Specialized Characteristics of Cardiac Muscles01:27

Specialized Characteristics of Cardiac Muscles

The primary role of cardiac muscles is to propel blood throughout the cardiovascular system. The cardiac muscle cells, or cardiomyocytes, exhibit specialized characteristics that allow them to perform this function.
Cardiac muscle cells are smaller than skeletal muscles, averaging 10–20 mm in diameter and 50–100 mm in length. However, they have large energy demands for continuous contraction and relaxation. This energy is almost exclusively derived from aerobic metabolism of energy reserves in...
Excitation-Contraction Coupling in Skeletal Muscles01:20

Excitation-Contraction Coupling in Skeletal Muscles

Excitation-contraction coupling is a series of events that occur between generating an action potential and initiating a muscle contraction. It occurs at the triad, a structure found in skeletal muscle fibers that comprise a T-tubule and terminal cisternae of the sarcoplasmic reticulum on each side. These triads are visible in longitudinally sectioned muscle fibers. They are typically located at the A-I junction — the junction between the A and I bands of the sarcomere.
When an action potential...
The Sarcomere01:08

The Sarcomere

A sarcomere is a microscopic segment repeating in a myofibril. The sarcomere fundamentally consists of two main myofilaments: thick filaments called myosin and thin filaments called actin. These filaments interact by sliding past each other in response to stimulus. In addition to myosin and actin, several other proteins, such as tropomyosin, troponin, titin, nebulin, myomesin, α-actinin, and dystrophin, play crucial roles in regulating, structuring, and functioning of the sarcomere.
Each myosin...
Cellular Adaptation II: Hypertrophy01:26

Cellular Adaptation II: Hypertrophy

Hypertrophy is the increase in the size of individual cells, resulting in the enlargement of a tissue or organ. Unlike hyperplasia, which involves an increase in cell number, hypertrophy is characterized by an increase in cell volume. This process often occurs in response to higher functional demand or hormonal stimulation, leading to the production of more structural proteins and organelles, thereby enhancing the cells' work capacity.There are two primary types of hypertrophy: physiological...
Microscopic Anatomy of Skeletal Muscles01:13

Microscopic Anatomy of Skeletal Muscles

Skeletal muscle cells, also called muscle fibers, are distinctly elongated, multi-nucleated, slender biological units. They are packed with specialized structures designed to facilitate their primary function, which is contraction.
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Related Experiment Video

Updated: Jun 13, 2026

Creating a Structurally Realistic Finite Element Geometric Model of a Cardiomyocyte to Study the Role of Cellular Architecture in Cardiomyocyte Systems Biology
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A multiscale model for eccentric and concentric cardiac growth through sarcomerogenesis.

Serdar Göktepe1, Oscar John Abilez, Kevin Kit Parker

  • 1Department of Mechanical Engineering, Stanford University, 496 Lomita Mall, Stanford, CA 94305, USA. goktepe@stanford.edu

Journal of Theoretical Biology
|May 8, 2010
PubMed
Summary

This study introduces a computational model for maladaptive cardiac growth, linking cellular changes to heart enlargement. It explains how volume or pressure overload causes distinct forms of cardiac hypertrophy and dilation.

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Last Updated: Jun 13, 2026

Creating a Structurally Realistic Finite Element Geometric Model of a Cardiomyocyte to Study the Role of Cellular Architecture in Cardiomyocyte Systems Biology
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Published on: March 26, 2015

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Area of Science:

  • Computational Biology
  • Cardiovascular Physiology
  • Biomechanics

Background:

  • Maladaptive cardiac growth, including hypertrophy and dilation, is a hallmark of heart disease.
  • Existing models often lack detailed cellular mechanisms driving these macroscopic changes.

Purpose of the Study:

  • To develop a novel computational model for maladaptive cardiac growth.
  • To link cellular alterations (cytoskeletal, morphological) to kinematic changes in cardiac chambers.
  • To differentiate mechanisms of eccentric and concentric hypertrophy.

Main Methods:

  • Finite volume growth model with multiplicative decomposition of the deformation gradient (elastic and growth parts).
  • Growth tensor correlated with sarcomerogenesis (sarcomere addition in series or parallel).
  • Nonlinear finite element analysis for spatial discretization and implicit Euler backward scheme for temporal discretization.

Main Results:

  • Volume overload leads to sarcomere addition in series, increasing cardiomyocyte length, causing eccentric hypertrophy and dilation.
  • Pressure overload leads to sarcomere addition in parallel, increasing myocyte cross-sectional area, causing concentric hypertrophy and wall thickening.
  • The model demonstrates how local cellular changes influence global cardiac form and function in a bi-ventricular model.

Conclusions:

  • The computational model successfully captures distinct pathways of maladaptive cardiac growth based on overload type.
  • Cellular-level changes in sarcomerogenesis are critical drivers of cardiac chamber remodeling.
  • This framework provides insights into the mechanical basis of heart failure progression.