Identifying the evolutionary building blocks of the cardiac conduction system.

The endothermic state of mammals and birds requires high heart rates to accommodate the high rates of oxygen consumption. These high heart rates are driven by very similar conduction systems consisting of an atrioventricular node that slows the electrical impulse and a His-Purkinje system that effic...

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Bibliographic Details
Main Authors: Bjarke Jensen, Bastiaan J D Boukens, Alex V Postma, Quinn D Gunst, Maurice J B van den Hoff, Antoon F M Moorman, Tobias Wang, Vincent M Christoffels
Format: Article
Language:English
Published: Public Library of Science (PLoS) 2012-01-01
Series:PLoS ONE
Online Access:http://europepmc.org/articles/PMC3439475?pdf=render