Magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) reveals high cardiac ejection fractions in red-footed tortoises (Chelonoidis carbonarius)

Publikation: Bidrag til tidsskriftTidsskriftartikelForskningfagfællebedømt

The ejection fraction of the trabeculated cardiac ventricle of reptiles has not previously been measured. Here, we used the gold standard clinical methodology – electrocardiogram-gated flow magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) – to validate stroke volume measurements and end diastolic ventricular blood volume. This produced an estimate of ejection fraction in our study species, the red footed tortoise Chelonoidis carbonarius (n=5), under isoflurane anaesthesia of 88±11%. After reduction of the prevailing right-to-left intraventricular shunt through the action of atropine, the ejection fraction was 96±6%. This methodology opens new avenues for studying the complex hearts of ectotherms, and validating hypotheses on the function of a more highly trabeculated heart than that of endotherms, which have lower ejection fractions.

OriginalsprogEngelsk
Artikelnummerjeb206714
TidsskriftJournal of Experimental Biology
Vol/bind222
Udgave nummer18
ISSN0022-0949
DOI
StatusUdgivet - 2019

Bibliografisk note

Funding Information:
C.J.A.W. gratefully acknowledges funding from the Novo Nordisk Foundation, E.M.G. is funded by a grant from the Annie and Otto Johs. Detlefs’ Foundation, and T.W. is funded by the Danish Council for Independent Research, Natural Sciences (Det Frie Forskningsråd | Natur og Univers, FNU).

Funding Information:
C.J.A.W. gratefully acknowledges funding from the Novo Nordisk Foundation, E.M.G. is funded by a grant from the Annie and Otto Johs. Detlefs? Foundation, and T.W. is funded by the Danish Council for Independent Research, Natural Sciences (Det Frie Forskningsr?d | Natur og Univers, FNU).

Publisher Copyright:
© 2019. Published by The Company of Biologists Ltd

ID: 282937161