The molecular basis of sudden death

José Jalife

Centro Nacional de Investigaciones Cardiovasculares Carlos III (CNIC), Spain

Arrhythmias and sudden cardiac death are an important public health problem in industrialized countries. Among people younger than 40 years, hereditary cardiomyopathies and ion channel diseases are the most common cause of sudden death.

In arrhythmias that cause sudden death, the cardiac electrical system becomes disordered, which impairs the heart´s ability to contract due to unknown causes. Sudden cardiac death is uncommon but particularly tragic in children and young people.

The project focuses on the molecular basis of the ion channels responsible for the electrical system of the heart toward understanding why inheritable cardiac diseases lead to arrhythmias and sudden death.

Dysfunction of ion channel complexes in inheritable cardiac diseases

€499,895