| Abstrakt: |
The FitzHugh-Nagumo model of nerve conduction is also used as a model of cardiac excitability. We propose the replacement of a gating variable of the conductance of K+ current with Ca2+ current as a slow variable of the model, in which plays a key role in the cardiac action potential. Since ion currents conduct transversely as well as longitudinally through gap junctions between myocytes, particularly in ischemia, a respective diffusion term is involved to both equations of a fast variable and a slow variable. We show that only a small increase of a coefficient of the diffusion term of Ca2+ current may cause cardiac instabilities, which are presumed to cause breakup of conduction and finally a lethal arrhythmia, ventricular fibrillation. Particularly, these instabilities do not occur without the diffusion term of Ca2+ current. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR] |
