Contact Details
- Phone
- +64 3 479 8102
- michelle.munro@otago.ac.nz
University Links
- Position
- Senior Lecturer
- Department
- Department of Physiology
- Qualifications
- MSc PhD
- Research summary
- Our lab investigates how changes in cardiomyocyte organisation influence function in cardiac arrhythmia and heart failure.
Research
My lab is primarily interested in the ultrastructural organisation of cardiac muscle cells. Our focus is on how this changes in different types of heart disease and the impact it has on cardiac function. This includes studying the organisation of different structures and proteins involved in calcium handling in the heart, such as the transverse tubules and dyadic proteins.
Our current project is looking at the role of a calcium-binding protein in the development of atrial fibrillation - the most common cardiac arrhythmia. We use a combination of techniques, including immunohistochemistry, western blotting, confocal microscopy of fixed and live samples, as well as super-resolution imaging.
Publications
Waddell, H. M. M., Mereacre, V., Alvarado, F. J., & Munro, M. L. (2023). Clustering properties of the cardiac ryanodine receptor in health and heart failure. Journal of Molecular & Cellular Cardiology, 185, 38-49. doi: 10.1016/j.yjmcc.2023.10.012
Okolo, C. A., Khaing, E.-P., Mereacre, V., Wallace, R. S., Munro, M. L., Erickson, J. R., & Jones, P. P. (2023). Direct regulation of the cardiac ryanodine receptor (RyR2) by O-GlcNAcylation. Cardiovascular Diabetology, 22, 276. doi: 10.1186/s12933-023-02010-3
Parveen, S., Cheah, P. H. S., Worthington, L. P. I., Smither, R. A., Munro, M. L., Bussey, C. T., Lamberts, R. R., & Jones, P. P. (2023). Depressed HCN4 function in the type 2 diabetic sinoatrial node. Molecular & Cellular Biochemistry, 478, 1825-1833. doi: 10.1007/s11010-022-04635-6
Sibbles, E. T., Waddell, H. M. M., Mereacre, V., Jones, P. P., & Munro, M. L. (2022). The function and regulation of calsequestrin-2: Implications in calcium-mediated arrhythmias. Biophysical Reviews, 14, 329-352. doi: 10.1007/s12551-021-00914-6
Munro, M. L., van Hout, I., Aitken-Buck, H., Sugunesegran, R., Bhagwat, K., Davis, P. J., Lamberts, R. R., Coffey, S., … Jones, P. P. (2021). Human atrial fibrillation is not associated with remodeling of ryanodine receptor clusters. Frontiers in Cell & Developmental Biology, 9, 633704. doi: 10.3389/fcell.2021.633704
Okolo, C. A., Khaing, E.-P., Mereacre, V., Wallace, R. S., Munro, M. L., Erickson, J. R., & Jones, P. P. (2023). Direct regulation of the cardiac ryanodine receptor (RyR2) by O-GlcNAcylation. Cardiovascular Diabetology, 22, 276. doi: 10.1186/s12933-023-02010-3
Journal - Research Article
Parveen, S., Cheah, P. H. S., Worthington, L. P. I., Smither, R. A., Munro, M. L., Bussey, C. T., Lamberts, R. R., & Jones, P. P. (2023). Depressed HCN4 function in the type 2 diabetic sinoatrial node. Molecular & Cellular Biochemistry, 478, 1825-1833. doi: 10.1007/s11010-022-04635-6
Journal - Research Article
Munro, M. L., van Hout, I., Aitken-Buck, H., Sugunesegran, R., Bhagwat, K., Davis, P. J., Lamberts, R. R., Coffey, S., … Jones, P. P. (2021). Human atrial fibrillation is not associated with remodeling of ryanodine receptor clusters. Frontiers in Cell & Developmental Biology, 9, 633704. doi: 10.3389/fcell.2021.633704
Journal - Research Article
Chakraborty, A. D., Gonano, L. A., Munro, M. L., Smith, L. J., Thekkedam, C., Staudacher, V., Gamble, A. B., … Jones, P. P. (2019). Activation of RyR2 by class I kinase inhibitors. British Journal of Pharmacology, 176, 773-786. doi: 10.1111/bph.14562
Journal - Research Article
Munro, M. L., Shen, X., Ward, M., Ruygrok, P. N., Crossman, D. J., & Soeller, C. (2018). Highly variable contractile performance correlates with myocyte content in trabeculae from failing human hearts. Scientific Reports, 8(1), 2957. doi: 10.1038/s41598-018-21199-y
Journal - Research Article
Crossman, D. J., Shen, X., Jüllig, M., Munro, M., Hou, Y., Middleditch, M., … Soeller, C. (2017). Increased collagen within the transverse tubules in human heart failure. Cardiovascular Research, 113(8), 879-891. doi: 10.1093/cvr/cvx055
Journal - Research Article
Munro, M. L., & Soeller, C. (2016). Early transverse tubule development begins in utero in the sheep heart. Journal of Muscle Research & Cell Motility, 37(6), 195-202. doi: 10.1007/s10974-016-9462-4
Journal - Research Article
Munro, M. L., Jayasinghe, I. D., Wang, Q., Quick, A., Wang, W., Baddeley, D., … Soeller, C. (2016). Junctophilin-2 in the nanoscale organisation and functional signalling of ryanodine receptor clusters in cardiomyocytes. Journal of Cell Science, 129, 4388-4398. doi: 10.1242/jcs.196873
Journal - Research Article
Jayasinghe, I. D., Clowsley, A. H., Munro, M., Hou, Y., Crossman, D. J., & Soeller, C. (2015). Revealing T-tubules in striated muscle with new optical super-resolution microscopy techniques. European Journal of Translational Myology, 25(1), 15-26. doi: 10.4081/ejtm.2015.4747
Journal - Research Article
Jayasinghe, I. D., Munro, M., Baddeley, D., Launikonis, B. S., & Soeller, C. (2014). Observation of the molecular organization of calcium release sites in fast- and slow-twitch skeletal muscle with nanoscale imaging. Journal of the Royal Society Interface, 11(99), 20140570. doi: 10.1098/rsif.2014.0570
Journal - Research Article
Wang, W., Landstrom, A. P., Wang, Q., Munro, M. L., Beavers, D., Ackerman, M. J., … Wehrens, X. H. T. (2014). Reduced junctional Na+/Ca2+-exchanger activity contributes to sarcoplasmic reticulum Ca2+ leak in junctophilin-2-deficient mice. American Journal of Physiology: Heart & Circulatory Physiology, 307(9), H1317-H1326. doi: 10.1152/ajpheart.00413.2014
Journal - Research Article
Waddell, H. M. M., Mereacre, V., Alvarado, F. J., & Munro, M. L. (2023). Clustering properties of the cardiac ryanodine receptor in health and heart failure. Journal of Molecular & Cellular Cardiology, 185, 38-49. doi: 10.1016/j.yjmcc.2023.10.012
Journal - Research Other
Sibbles, E. T., Waddell, H. M. M., Mereacre, V., Jones, P. P., & Munro, M. L. (2022). The function and regulation of calsequestrin-2: Implications in calcium-mediated arrhythmias. Biophysical Reviews, 14, 329-352. doi: 10.1007/s12551-021-00914-6
Journal - Research Other
Munro, M. L., & Jones, P. P. (2020). Too much of a good thing? Establishing a role of excessive RyR2 dephosphorylation in heart disease. Journal of Physiology, 598(6), 1115-1116. doi: 10.1113/jp279569
Journal - Research Other