The heart is vital for biological function in almost all chordates, including human. It beats continually throughout our life, supplying the body with oxygen and nutrients while removing waste products. If it stops - so does life. The heartbeat involves precise coordination of the activity of billions of individual cells, as well as their swift and well-coordinated adaption to changes in physiological demand. Much of the vital control of cardiac function occurs at the level of individual cardiac muscle cells, including acute beat-by-beat feedback from the local mechanical environment to electrical activity (as opposed to longer-term changes in gene expression, and functional or structural remodelling). This process is known as Mechano-Electric Coupling (MEC). In the current review, we: present evidence for, and implications of, MEC in health and disease in human; summarise our understanding of MEC effects gained from whole animal, organ, tissue, and cell studies; identify potential molecular mediators of MEC responses; and demonstrate the power of computational modelling in developing a more comprehensive understanding of 'what makes the heart tick'.

中文翻译：

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心脏机械电耦合：机械刺激对心率和节律的急性影响。

心脏对于包括人类在内的几乎所有脊索的生物学功能至关重要。它在我们的生命中不断跳动，为人体提供氧气和营养，同时清除废物。如果停止-生活也停止。心跳涉及数十亿个单个细胞的活动的精确协调，以及它们对生理需求变化的迅速而协调良好的适应。心脏功能的大部分生命控制发生在单个心肌细胞的水平，包括从局部机械环境到电活动的急性逐搏反馈（与基因表达，功能或结构的长期变化相对）重塑）。此过程称为机电耦合（MEC）。在当前的审查中，我们：提供以下方面的证据及其含义：MEC在人类健康和疾病中的作用；总结我们对从整个动物，器官，组织和细胞研究中获得的MEC效果的理解；确定MEC反应的潜在分子介质；并展示了计算模型在开发更全面的理解“使心脏跳动的原因”方面的力量。