"Cell": Start the heartbeat correctly, scientists reveal the mechanism of action of antiarrhythmic drugs

Every time the heart beats, the required electrical signal is inseparable from a sodium channel protein on the cardiomyocytes-voltage-gated sodium channel NaV1.

Professor Zheng Ning from the University of Washington and Professor William A.

Past studies have shown that the opening and closing of NaV1.

Since the opening of NaV1.

▲Study diagram (picture source: reference [1])

The high-resolution cryo-EM structure of the mutant showed that the segment on the inside of the cell was bent and rotated to enlarge the diameter of the activation gate to 10 angstroms, which was enough to allow hydrated sodium ions to pass freely

Propafenone is a commonly used antiarrhythmic drug.

The paper concluded that this study clarified the molecular mechanisms that generate action potentials, drugs block the opening of sodium channels, and rapid inactivation of sodium channels to initiate heartbeat at the atomic level

Reference materials:

[1] Daohua Jiang et al.