New revelations on the interplay between cardiomyocyte architecture and cardiomyocyte function in growth, health, and disease: a brief introduction

The heart is a dynamic organ whose form and function change in accordance with changes in cardiovascular demand from the body. Short-term increases in demand are met almost instantaneously by increasing cardiac output. These rapid changes are driven by an intricate cellular network of chemical and mechanical signalling pathways. During longer-term changes in blood supply demand, as in growth or with disease, altered cellular chemical and mechanical signals initiate structural remodelling to reset cardiac output to the new level of demand. Thus, changes in cardiac demand which occur as we grow and age, during disease and recovery or with extreme training, are underpinned by the interplay between functional and structural remodelling of the cardiomyocyte. Additionally, cardiomyocyte function and structure differ across animal taxa, reflecting the varying cardiovascular demands that exist between, for example, invertebrates, fishes, birds and mammals. In this special issue, we offer a collection of state-of-the-art research articles, reviews and methods that investigate the intimate relationship between cardiomyocyte function and architecture. The collection emphasizes the need for, and epitomizes the success of, merging traditional sub-disciplines within cardiomyocyte biology to gain an integrated understanding of how structure and function are linked in adaptive and maladaptive cardiac remodelling. Here, we provide a short introduction to the papers contained within this special issue organized into key areas but highlight cross-talk between areas. We follow this by briefly discussing the technical advances in imaging, micro- and nanoscale manipulation, bioinformatic analyses and computational approaches that underpin many of the studies contained herein and reinforcing the link between technological development and scientific advancement.