Protein May Contribute to Sudden Cardiac Death in ARVC

Sudden cardiac death in patients with arrhythmogenic right ventricular cardiomyopathy (ARVC) may be caused by integrin β1D, according to results from a study published in Circulation.

In the small-scale study, researchers compared the cellular proteins in the explanted hearts of 4 patients with ARVC to healthy hearts and found a significant reduction in the protein β1D.

The researchers then created genetically modified mice that lacked the β1D protein in the heart muscle cells. Although the mice appeared have normal heart function at rest, under stress the mice were more likely to develop arrhythmias.

“Our findings suggest that preventing the loss of integrin β1D using existing or new drugs to inhibit this signaling pathway might provide a way to treat ARVC,” said Long-Sheng Song, MD, professor of internal medicine at the University of Iowa Carver College of Medicine and one of the leaders of the study team in a press release.

Read the full release here.