Method of modulating the activity of calcium channels in cardiac cells and reagents therefor

摘要

The present invention relates generally to novel peptides that are capable of modulating the activity of calcium channels in cardiac cells. More specifically, the present invention provides a method of modulating the activity of a cardiac calcium channel comprising contacting a cardiac ryanodine receptor (RyR2) with an amount of a fragment of a dihydropyridine receptor (DHPR) polypeptide sufficient to modulate the activity of said RyR2, and determining the activity of said calcium channel. The inventive method is useful for the treatment of a range of disorders and diseases associated with cardiac dysfunction, particularly those diseases and disorders involving reduced cardiac output and/or aberrant excitation-contraction coupling, calcium overload, or calcium leakage, in cardiac cells.