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Personnel

  • Elena Cruz

    Determining the functional effect of phosphorylated Calsequestrin Type II

  • Dr Michelle Munro

    Our lab investigates how changes in cardiomyocyte organisation influence function in cardiac arrhythmia and heart failure.

  • Elliot Sibbles

    How CSQ2 glycosylation influences heart failure and arrhythmia

  • Dr Helen Waddell

    How structural changes of cardiomyocytes contribute to atrial fibrillation and arrhythmia

Research interests

I am interested in how the cardiac ultrastructure impacts the function of the heart, in particular the organisation of specialised structures known as the dyad and transverse tubules.  I am investigating how these structures are remodelled in atrial fibrillation and heart failure, and whether specific proteins can be targeted to restore cardiac organisation and function in heart disease.

Projects

  • Restoration of calcium balance by calsequestrin in atrial fibrillation

Current funding

  • 2019–2022: Heart Foundation of New Zealand Research Fellowship
  • 2020–2022: Health Research Council Emerging Researcher First Grant

Previous funding

  • Heart Foundation of New Zealand small project grant

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

Waddell, H., de Jonge, W., & Munro, M. (2023). Preparation of functional human atrial slices and multi-day tissue culture. Heart, Lung & Circulation, 32(Suppl. 3), 680. doi: 10.1016/j.hlc.2023.06.584

Keelty, G. B., de Jonge, W. M., Waddell, H. M. M., & Munro, M. L. (2023). Characterizing transverse tubules in the right atrium of arrhythmic patients. In T. Milne, M. Anwar, L. Burga, H. Harcombe, M. Garelja, A. Middleton, D. C. Ribeiro, N. Fleming, K. Ogbuehi & A. Bahn (Eds.), Proceedings of the 265th Otago Medical School Research Society (OMSRS) Meeting: Summer Student Speaker Awards. Dunedin, New Zealand: OMSRS. Retrieved from https://ourarchive.otago.ac.nz/handle/10523/12839

Munro, M. (2022, June). Biphasic regulation of RyR2 activity by calsequestrin-2: Implications in Ca-mediated arrhythmias. Invited presentation at the XXIV World Congress of the International Society for Heart Research (ISHR), Berlin, Germany.

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