The origin of the department dates back to 1990, in relationship with the transformation of the Department of Artificial and Support Circulation of the former Institute of Experimental Surgery SAS to the Institute for Heart Research SAS.

Scientific orientation of the Department is characterized as basic medical research focused on the selected topics of theoretical and experimental cardiology.

Being a part of the institute that has been approved as an external institution for the university education of the 3rd level, the department is involved in PhD. training program in the scientific subject 4.2.10 – Animal physiology.

Head of Department :

Ravingerová Táňa, MD, DSc, FIACS

Senior scientists:

Ravingerová Táňa, MD, DSc.

Phone: 00421 02 54774405, E-mail:  This e-mail address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it

Styk Ján, MD, PhD.

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Research Scientists:

Barteková Monika, PhD.

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Research Assistants:

Pancza Dezider, Ing.

Phone: 00421 02 54774405

PhD Students:

Čarnická Slávka, MSc.

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Nemčeková Martina, MSc.

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Ledvényiová Veronika, Mgr.

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Zálešák Marek, MUDr.

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Technical Assistants:

Blažíčková Iveta

Formanková Iveta

Molnár Jaroslav

RESEARCH AREAS:

• Myocardial ischemia and reperfusion injury, arrhythmias and sudden death: prevention and protection
• Ischemic tolerance in normal and diabetic myocardium
• Cardiac adaptation, molecular mechanisms of endogenous cardioprotection
• Risk factors of cardiovascular diseases related to lifestyle; molecular mechanisms of pleiotropic effects of various drugs
• Gender-related differences and response to myocardial ischemia

EXPERIMENTAL MODELS:

Models of hypoxia, global and regional ischemia and reperfusion, models of acute and chronic hypertension, hypercholesterolemia, diabetes mellitus I. type. Ischemic and pharmacological preconditioning and their modifications.

TECHNIQUES:

• Perfusion of the isolated heart (rat, guinea pig, mice) - Langendorff technique (paced and non-paced heart).
• Computer-assisted monitoring of contractile function.
• Measurement of parameters of arrhythmogenesis; changes of action potential by means of endo- and epicardial electrodes.
• Determination of the size of infarction by computerized planimetry.
• Monitoring of blood pressure by  means of “tail-cuff plethysmograpy”.

NATIONAL COLLABORATION:

Faculty of Medicine, Comenius Uiversity, Bratislava

• Institute of Physiology

Topic: Modulation of heart function by hormones and ions.

• Pharmacobiochemical Laboratory

Topic: Adaptation of the diabetic myocardium.

Faculty of Pharmacy, Comenius Uiversity, Bratislava

• Department of pharmacology and toxicology

Topic: Impact of hypercholesterolemia on ischemic injury in the diabetic heart.

Jessenius Medical Faculty, Comenius University, Martin

• Department of Biochemistry

Topic: The role of free radicals in the adapted myocardium

Faculty of Natural Sciences, Comenius Uiversity, Bratislava

• Department of animal physiology and ethology

Collaboration in the frames of Bachelor, Masters and PhD. training programs.

Institute of Normal and Pathological Physiology SAS

Collaboration in the frames of of SRDA projects.

INTERNATIONAL COLLABORATION:

Institute of Physiology, Dept. Developmental Cardiology, AS CR, Prague, Czech Republic – bilateral collaboration in the frames of Academic agreements

Topic: Study of endogeneous cardioprotective mechanisms against myocardial ischemia.

Slovak principal investigator: Ravingerová Táňa

St. Boniface Gen.Hosp.Res. Ctr., Div. Cardiovasc. Sci., Winnipeg, Canada

Collaboration between the institutions focused on various topics of cardiovascular research and education.

Slovak principal investigator: Ravingerová Táňa

School of Biology, Aristotle University in Thessaloniki, Thessaloniki, Greece

Topic: The role of nuclear receptors PPAR in normal and diseased myocardium.

Collaboration between the institutions focused on joint research activity and exchange of scientists.

Slovak principal investigator: Ravingerová Táňa

Bakulev Institute of Cardiovascular Surgery, RAMS, Moscow, RF  – bilateral collaboration in the frames of Academic agreements

Topic: Study of the adaptive mechanisms in the heart during ischemic injury: novel possibilities of cardioprotection.

Slovak principal investigators : Styk Ján, Ravingerová Táňa

PROJECTS:

Projects supported by Slovak Research and Development Agency:

• Activation of endogenous protective mechanisms in the myocardium as a new approach towards antiischemic protection.

APVV -LPP-0393-09

Coordinator and principal investigator: Ravingerová Táňa

• Activation of cell signalling mechanisms as a potential target of cardiac protection against ischemic injury.

APVV SK-CZ-0049-07 – project of bilateral collaboration SR-CR

Slovak coordinator and principal investigator : Ravingerová Táňa

• The effect of aliskerin loaded nanoparticles in experimental hypertension.

APVV- 0742-10

Coordinator: Pecháňová O. – Institute of Normal and Pathological Physiology SAS

Principal investigator: Ravingerová Táňa

• Hypertension and diabetes as the parts of metabolic syndrome: the effects of antioxidant therapy.

APVV- 0538-07

Coordinator: Pecháňová O. - Institute of Normal and Pathological Physiology SAS

Principal investigator: Ravingerová Táňa

• Sex differences in etiopathogenesis of social stress-related cardiovascular and behavioral disorders in individuals with predisposition to hypertension.

APVV-0523-10

Coordinator: Bernátová I. - Institute of Normal and Pathological Physiology SAS

Collaborator: Ravingerová Táňa

Projects supported by Scientific Grant Agency of SAS and Ministry of Education of SR (VEGA SR):

• Modulatory effects of lifestyle-related risk factors on the mechanidsms of subcellular adaptation to myocardial ischemia.

2/0054/11

Principal investigator: Ravingerová Táňa

• Cell signalling pathways and transcription factor activation in adaptive processes in the myocardium as an alternative approcach to antiischemic protection.

2/0173/08

Principal investigator: Ravingerová Táňa

• Influence of hypercholesterolemia on endogeneous adaptive mechanisms in early stage of diabetes: interference with hypolipidemic agents.

1/0620/10

Principal investigator (ME SR): Adameová Adriana - PharmF Comenius University

Principal investigator (SAS): Ravingerová Táňa

Projects supported by Centre of Excellence for Cardiovascular Research SAS:

• Molekulárne mechanizmy adaptácie srdca podieľajúce sa na zmiernení ischemicko-reperfúzneho poškodenia.

Coordinator: Križanová Olga – Institute of Molecular Physiology and Genetics SAS

Principal investigator (IHR SAS): Ravingerová Táňa

SELECTED PUBLICATIONS:

1. Ravingerová T., Adameová A., Matejíková J., Kelly T., Nemčeková M., Kucharská J., Pecháňová O., Lazou A. Subcellular mechanisms of adaptation in the diabetic myocardium: relevance to ischemic preconditioning in the non-diseased heart. Exp  Clin Cardiol, 15, 2010, 4, 68-76.
2. Adameová A., Harčárová A., Matejíková J., Pancza D., Kuželová M., Čarnická S., Švec P., Barteková M., Styk J., Ravingerová T. Simvastatin alleviates myocardial contractile dysfunction and lethal ischemic injury in rat heart independent of cholesterol-lowering effects. Physiol Res, 58, 2009, 449-54.
3. Ravingerova T, Adameova A,  Kelly T, Antonopoulou E, Pancza D, Ondrejčáková M, Khandelwal VK, Čarnická S, Lazou A. Changes in PPAR gene expression and myocardial tolerance to ischaemia: Relevance to pleiotropic effects of statins. Can J Physiol Pharmacol, 87, 2009,1028-36.
4. Matejíková J, Ravingerová  T, Pancza D, Čarnická S, Kolář F. Mitochondrial K(ATP) opening confers protection against lethal myocardial injury and ischaemia-induced arrhythmias in the rat heart via PI3K/Akt-dependent and independent mechanisms. Can J Physiol Pharmacol, 87, 2009, 1055-1062.
5. Ravingerová T, Matejíková J, Neckář J, Andelová E, Kolář F. Differential role of PI3K/Akt pathway in the infarct size limitation and antiarrhythmic protection in the rat heart. Mol Cell Biochem 297, 2007, 111-120.
6. Paulis Ľ., Važan R., Šimko F., Pecháňová O., Styk J., Janega P.: Myocardial collagen I and III ratio, fibrosis and NO-synthase expression after exposure of rats to continuous light. In: Physiol. Research, 2007, 56, suppl. 2, S71-S76
7. Važan R., Pancza D., Béder I., Styk J.: Ischemia-reperfusion injury – Antiarrhythmic effect of melatonin associated with reduced recovering of contractility. In: Gen.Physiol. Biophys., 2005, 24, 3, 355-359
8. Ravingerová T., Barančík M., Strnisková M. Mitogen-activated protein kinases: a new therapeutic target in cardiac pathology. Mol Cell Biochem 2003, 247, 127-138.
9. Ravingerová T. , Neckář J., Kolář F., Štetka R., Volkovová K., Ziegelhoffer A., Styk J.: Ventricular arrhythmias following coronary artery occlusion in rats: Is diabetic heart less or more sensitive to ischemia? Basic Res Cardiol 2001, 96,160-168.
10. Ravingerová T., Styk J., Pancza D., Tribulová N. , Šeboková J., Volkovová K., Ziegelhöffer A., Slezák J.: Diabetic cardiomyopathy in rats: alleviation of myocardial dysfunction  caused  by  Ca²⁺ overload.  Diabetes Res Clin Pract  1996, 31 Suppl., S105-S112.