Endurance exercise remodels pulmonary vein sleeve myocytes and promotes a proarrhythmic atrial substrate
Authors: Soattin Luca , Topal Leila , Tikhomirov Roman , Lagomarsino-Oneto Daniele , Al-Othman Sami , Saluja Sushant , Hornyik Tibor , Husti Zoltán , Pintér Jenő Antal , Mohammed Aiman Saleh A , Smith Matthew , Francis Alice J , McKie Megan , Torre Eleonora , Polyák Alexandra , Farkas Attila , Bentzen Bo Hjorth , Keavney Bernard , Nagy Norbert , Jost Norbert , Casadei Barbara , Mangoni Matteo Elia , Boyett Mark Richard , Varró András , Morris Gwilym Matthew , Baczkó István , D’Souza Alicia 
Published: February 2025

BACKGROUND

Atrial fibrillation (AF) susceptibility is heightened in endurance athletes but the underlying mechanisms are incompletely understood. Because pulmonary vein (PV) myocyte triggers are critical determinants of AF, we investigated PV electrophysiological remodelling in animal models of the athlete’s heart.

METHODS

The following experiments were performed in canines and mice after 16 or 6 weeks, respectively, of daily exercise training (ExT), and compared to sedentary (Sed) controls: ECG recording, echocardiography, pharmacological autonomic block, extrastimulus pacing, multielectrode array mapping, monophasic and intracellular action potential (AP) recording with custom-designed pattern recognition analysis, histology, RNAseq and spatialin situtranscriptomics.

RESULTS

AF propensity was significantly increased in ExT animals. Mapping studies identified heightened rotational activity in the PV-left atrial (LA) junction of ExTvs. Sed caninesin vivo,and enhanced automaticity, triggered activity and AP duration variabilityex vivoin ExT canines and mice. Intracellular recordings in mouse PV cardiomyocytes determined at least six AP subtypes with increased frequency of pacemaker-like APs in ExT PV, concomitant with increased expression of pacemaking HCN4, Cav1.3 and Cav3.1 channels. PV spontaneous excitability was also significantly enhanced. Subcellular resolution spatial transcriptomics in mouse PV-LA identified diffuse ion channel remodelling and activation of established AF-promoting pro-inflammatory and pro-fibrotic cytokines and chemokines in ExT PV cardiomyocytes. Conduction slowing in the ExT PV-LA junction was attributable to: gap junction remodelling, reduced Na+channel expression and increased extracellular matrix deposition with enhanced myofibroblast number and proximity to PV cardiomyocytes.

CONCLUSIONS

Endurance exercise elicits proarrhythmic electro-anatomical remodelling of the PV-LA junction with enhanced pacemaking ion channel expression and immune-inflammatory pathway activation in PV myocytes as prominent contributors.

CLINICAL PERSPECTIVE

What is new?

This work is the first demonstration that endurance training results in proarrhythmic electrophysiological remodelling of PV sleeve myocytes and extracellular matrix deposition in the PV-LA junction.

We register electrical and molecular heterogeneity of the PV-LA junction at single cell and subcellular resolution, and for the first time identify the molecular events that underlie increased proarrhythmic activity of the trained PV. These include enhanced pacemaking ion channel expression (e.g., HCN4, Cav1.3, and Cav3.1), pro-inflammatory cytokine activation (e.g., TNFα, IL-6), increased myofibroblasts and extracellular matrix deposition.

What are the clinical implications?

We identify the molecular determinants of PV proarrhythmic activity in the trained heart and present new therapeutic targets for AF prevention in athletes.

Our findings provide mechanistic rationale for the efficacy of pulmonary vein isolation for AF in athletes.