The researchers, based at the Cedars-Sinai Heart Institute in California, have utilised a virus to inject a solitary gene into heart muscle cells that can replicate the effects of a pacemaker, without the need of an invasive medical procedure. One of the senior researchers on the project, Hee Cheo Cho has detailed how the process works:
“The new cells generated electrical impulses spontaneously and were indistinguishable from native pacemaker cells”.
Whilst the means in which a pacemaker interacts with the body’s physiology is complex, the mechanical process behind it is relatively simple. Basically, pacemaker cells produce and deliver highly-systematic electrical pulses to heart muscle cells so they can function rhythmically, within consistent and repetitive patterns. The signal that they produce is known as the sinus rhythm and can sometimes be disrupted fairly easily by a variety of factors such as stress, anxiety and excessive alcohol-use. A healthy sinus rhythm ensures that blood is pumped around the body efficiently, and that oxygen-levels in the blood are sufficient. Therefore, if a pacemaker fails, the only option is often for it to be replaced – but this can only be done if the patient is healthy enough to survive the trauma of surgery.
Fortunately, single genes can be inserted into the body simply and quickly, and are considered to be a safer alternative to the insertion of stem cells, which carries the risk of the onset of cancer in the patient. Whilst, there is still much research to be conducted on the subject, the effectiveness of the procedure is good news for the millions of people who have to undergo hazardous surgery each year, in order for pacemakers to be inserted.