Now in our 13th year of bringing you beautiful imagery from biomedical science every day

Search the archive of over 4000 images

Heart Hope

Comparing gene activity between normal heart cells and those from patients with hypertrophic cardiomyopathy

16 June 2022

Heart Hope

Bigheartedness, figuratively speaking, is a wonderful trait. But literally speaking, an oversized heart can lead to arrhythmia, heart failure and sudden death. For people with hypertrophic cardiomyopathy – an inherited disorder characterised by enlargement of the heart muscle and the cells within – minimising these risks is mainly a case of adopting a heart-healthy lifestyle. Indeed, there is only one medication on the market specifically developed to treat the condition, and it too carries a risk of heart failure. To gain more insight into the pathology of hypertrophic cardiomyopathy and thus possible new ways to clinically intervene, researchers are examining which genes are turned on and off in individual heart cells (pictured) from people with (right) and without (left) the condition. The next step will be to sort through the many disease-associated genes to find those that are driving pathology and that might be suitable targets for new drugs.

Written by Ruth Williams

Search The Archive

Submit An Image

Follow on Tumblr

Follow on Instagram

What is BPoD?

BPoD stands for Biomedical Picture of the Day. Managed by the MRC Laboratory of Medical Sciences until Jul 2023, it is now run independently by a dedicated team of scientists and writers. The website aims to engage everyone, young and old, in the wonders of biology, and its influence on medicine. The ever-growing archive of more than 4000 research images documents over a decade of progress. Explore the collection and see what you discover. Images are kindly provided for inclusion on this website through the generosity of scientists across the globe.

Read More

BPoD is also available in Catalan at www.bpod.cat with translations by the University of Valencia.