[ESTA Roster]

The Electrical Signaling, Ion Transport, and Arrhythmias [ESTA] Study Section will examine both basic and clinical applications related to cardiac and vascular electrical activity, excitation-contraction coupling, and related signaling.  This study section reviews applications that address the occurrence, cause, and treatment of cardiac and vascular electrical and electromechanical dysfunction, arrhythmias, and sudden death.  Studies may involve animals and humans, in vitro and in vivo systems, and computational approaches.  Where appropriate, studies will be considered that examine the effects of aging on arrhythmias, calcium homeostasis, and excitability.

Specific areas covered by ESTA:

• Structure-function of ion channels in membranes (cell surface and sarcoplasmic reticulum).
• Biophysical and other approaches to study the function of individual protein molecules (e.g., ion channels, connexins, and excitation-contraction (EC) coupling proteins).
• Regulation of expression and function of molecules that determine electrical activity, including their transcriptional regulation, post-translational modifications, assembly, trafficking, and anchoring.
• Basis of propagation and repolarization in normal and diseased hearts, including studies of specialized conduction systems and molecules such as connexins involved in cell-cell communication.
• Functional consequences of disease-associated mutations in ion channel and other genes that result in arrhythmias and vascular cell dysfunction.
• Identification of novel genes and proteins that modulate cardiac and vascular electrical activity, excitation-contraction coupling, and related signaling.
• Altered electrical behavior in acquired heart disease; e.g. remodeling related to arrhythmias, heart failure, hypertrophy, or ischemia.
• Intracellular calcium homeostasis (uptake and release mechanisms) and its role in calcium-related arrhythmias, and cardiac and VSM contractility.
• Calcium regulation of receptors, channels, transporters, and other calcium-sensitive proteins.
• Excitation-contraction and electromechanical coupling.
• Mediators and modulators of EC coupling, basis of action of individual components of EC coupling.
• Predictors of arrhythmias, including electrocardiography, body surface mapping, intracardiac recordings, signal averaging, and others. 
• Computational techniques to model individual channel activity in cellular and multicellular preparations, including the whole heart.
• Technique and device development for treatment of heart rhythm disorders.
• Evaluation of devices that are used in diagnosis and therapy of cardiac rhythm disorders.
• Identification and evaluation of pharmacologic and non-pharmacologic antiarrhythmic interventions.

ESTA has the following shared interests within the CVS IRG:

There is a shared interest in ion transfer and transport mechanisms affecting electrical activity and EC-coupling as a common endpoint for pathological conditions with other study sections in this IRG. Applications that deal specifically with cardiac and vascular electrical activity, excitation-contraction coupling and related signaling, and electrophysiologic aspects of disease processes will most properly be assigned to the ESTA study section.  Specific shared interests may occur with:

• With Cardiovascular Differentiation and Development [CDD]: Studies focusing on development of electrically active cells will be assigned to CDD.  ESTA will review those applications that deal with congenital and acquired arrhythmia syndromes and other ion movement abnormalities.

• With Cardiac Contractility, Hypertrophy, and Function [CCHF]:  When arrhythmias are studied as an etiology of heart failure and myocardial remodeling, including therapeutic effects of pacing on ventricular hemodynamics, the application is appropriately assigned to CCHF. ESTA will review applications that focus primarily on ion-movement, calcium homeostasis, and arrhythmias in hypertrophy, heart failure, ischemia, and transplant. Applications with a primary focus on modification of proteins involved in excitability by activation of signaling pathways in these conditions will also be assigned to ESTA.

• With Vascular Cell and Molecular Biology [VCMB]:  VCMB reviews those applications that emphasize a coupling to vascular cell and molecular biology. Applications dealing with the electrical consequences of hypertension, receptors, renin-angiotensin system in the heart and vasculature will be assigned to ESTA.   Fundamental studies of ion channels or calcium homeostasis without reference to integrated vascular cell function might be more appropriately assigned to the ESTA.

• With Clinical and Integrative Cardiovascular Sciences [CICS]: CICS may appropriately be assigned those applications that deal with arrhythmogenesis and that are outcome based.  Applications that deal with the mechanism of arrhythmogenesis are the purview of ESTA.

ESTA has the following shared interests outside the CVS IRG:

• With the Biological Chemistry and Macromolecular Biophysics [BCMB] IRG: Studies focusing on molecules involved in cardiac and vascular electrical activity, excitation-contraction coupling, and related signaling may be assigned to ESTA, whereas those developing methods or using these molecules simply as reagents may be assigned to the BCMB IRG.

• With the Cell Biology [CB] IRG:   Studies using molecular approaches to evaluate electrical and electromechanical functions and interactions in the cardiovascular system could be assigned to ESTA.  Alternatively, studies using molecular approaches to derive more general knowledge of electrical and electromechanical function could be assigned to the CB IRG.

• With the Genes, Genomes & Genetics [GGG] IRG: Studies focusing on genetic, genomic or proteomic approaches to identification and characterization of genes or pathways involved in electrical and electromechanical function in the cardiovascular system could be assigned to ESTA. If the studies propose to use genetic and genomic approaches to identify and characterize such genes, but the focus extends beyond the cardiovascular system, or have a general focus on basic mechanisms of electrical or electromechanical function, they could be assigned to the GGG IRG.

• With the Biology of Development and Aging [BDA] IRG:  (1) Studies on aging where the primary focus is on cardiovascular electrical activity could be assigned to ESTA.  Studies on the cardiovascular system that are testing hypotheses about mechanisms of aging that affect multiple systems or non-cardiovascular tissues could be assigned to the BDA IRG.  Studies on cardiovascular function or properties that are part of studies of multiple age-related changes in physiology or body composition (e.g., fat, cardiovascular and bone) could be assigned to the BDA IRG. (2) In general, applications that focus on early developmental processes up to and including formation of the primordial heart, including birth defects that emerge at these early stages, would typically be assigned to the BDA IRG.  Applications that deal with congenital and acquired arrhythmia syndromes and other ion movement abnormalities may be assigned to ESTA.

• With the Bioengineering Sciences and Technologies [BST] IRG:  Applications to develop fundamental bioengineering methods, pharmacologic and non-pharmacologic interventions, and computational/modeling approaches could be assigned to the BST IRG, whereas those proposing development and validation of methods focusing on evaluation of cardiac and vascular electrical activity, excitation-contraction coupling, and related signaling could be assigned to ESTA.

• With the Digestive Sciences [DIG] IRG:  Studies that examine arrhythmias due to administration of therapeutic agents may be assigned to ESTA.   Applications that focus on the general disposition of pro-drugs and drugs or biopharmaceutical agents may be assigned to the DIG IRG.

• With the Respiratory Sciences [RES] IRG:  Studies of the electrophysiology of pulmonary vasculature could be assigned to ESTA while studies of the consequences of altered electrical behavior in the pulmonary circulation could be assigned to the RES IRG. 

• With the Surgical Sciences, Biomedical Imaging and Bioengineering [SBIB] IRG:  Applications to develop fundamental imaging methods or early stages of development of sensors may be assigned to the SBIB IRG, whereas those proposing development and validation of methods focusing on evaluation of cardiovascular electrical activity could be assigned to ESTA.  Studies of arrhythmias associated with cardiac surgery or cardiopulmonary bypass can be appropriately assigned either in the SBIB IRG or to ESTA, with ESTA focused more on cardiovascular evaluation.