A localized meshless approach for modeling spatial-temporal calcium dynamics in ventricular myocytes

Area of Science:

• Cardiology
• Computational Biology
• Biophysics

Background:

• Excitation-contraction (E-C) coupling in cardiac myocytes relies on spatial-temporal calcium dynamics.
• Understanding these dynamics is vital for normal heart function and in disease states.

Purpose of the Study:

• To model calcium release, buffering, and re-uptake in cardiac myocytes using a novel meshless method.
• To assess the accuracy and efficiency of the local radial basis function collocation method (LRBFCM) for simulating calcium dynamics.

Main Methods:

• A nonlinear system of reaction-diffusion partial differential equations was solved using the local radial basis function collocation method (LRBFCM).
• A simplified model of a single transverse tubule (T-tubule) and surrounding half sarcomeres was investigated.
• The method was extended to whole-cell scale models to demonstrate scalability.

Main Results:

• The LRBFCM accurately modeled calcium dynamics in ventricular myocytes.
• Numerical results demonstrated comparable or superior capability and efficiency to finite element methods.
• The LRBFCM proved scalable for large-domain simulations.

Conclusions:

• The LRBFCM is a highly accurate and efficient tool for multiscale modeling of calcium dynamics in cardiac myocytes.
• This meshless method offers a robust approach for studying E-C coupling in both healthy and diseased hearts.