Decebal Vasincu, Corina Andriescu, Elena Geanina Vasincu, Juergen F. Kolb, Walther Bild, Camelia Miron
Abstract
Nanosecond pulsed electric fields (nsPEFs) were used to investigate the different responses arising in myocardial tissues when exposed to a 100 ns electrical pulse and to understand the influence of the electrical parameters on induced phenomena. Nanosecond pulse electric fields can affect the intracellular structures of cells in vitro. Nanosecond pulse electric fields applied to the cardiac tissue are considered to be a possible tool for treatment of arrhythmias or to improve blood circulation inside the myocardial tissue. For this study were used myocardial tissue surgically removed from Wistar rats. The tissue was suspended in KrebsHenseleit solution, placed under an electrode and subjected to 100 ns voltage pulses (2.5 – 10 kV/cm). 300 and 500 pulses at 0.5 Hz were applied. For an early indication in particular, histological investigations of the myocardial tissues exposed to nanosecond pulsed electric fields (nsPEFs) were performed to determine the extent of the morphological modifications produced at the cellular level. After exposure, tissues were prepared for optical microscopy, in order to observe any changes in cell morphology. Histopathological assessment has shown important modifications, such as significant capillary congestion, an aspect which may be explored as a potential application for treating the myocardial ischemia.