Abstract
Talin 1 is a cytoskeletal protein which is ubiquitously located in focal adhesions and in muscle-specific integrin complexes such as costameres, intercalated discs and myotendinous junctions. Costameres connect the actin cytoskeleton to the extracellular matrix (ECM). They provide structural integrity of the cell and transduction of mechanical forces in cardiomyocytes. In the costamere talin 1 is attached to vinculin and ß integrin. These proteins are thought to be important for force transmission and mechanotransduction as they may influence the material properties of the myocardium, and hence how forces are transmitted through the cells and tissue. The goal of the present study was to determine the influence of talin 1 on the passive mechanics of the myocardium. The passive mechanics were studied by performing passive stretch experiments on isolated papillary muscles from cardiac specific talin 1 knockout mice and their wild-type littermates. Stress strain curves were obtained and the averaged curves showed a lower compliance for the talin 1 knockout mice with contracting papillary muscles. Statistical analysis showed a significant difference for contracting papillary muscles with strain measured by local muscle deformations. This suggests that an alteration of the passive material properties was found using this method. The data presented here indicate that talin may have an effect on passive mechanics of the myocardium, but more tests are needed to make definitive statistical conclusions.
| Original language | English |
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| Place of Publication | Eindhoven |
| Publisher | Technische Universiteit Eindhoven |
| Number of pages | 14 |
| Publication status | Published - 2013 |