“Cardiac muscle fibre organization plays an important role in the mechanics and electrophysiology of the heart. Cardiac muscle contraction and electrical propagation are transmitted along the fibres, and their architecture therefore determines the particular movements of the heart. Until now, knowledge was limited to 2D cross-sections under the microscope, since technical challenges and the scarcity of healthy human hearts—which are rather used in transplants—constitute obstacles to 3D studies. My article presents the first atlas of the cardiac fibres as well as the first statistical analysis of the architectural variability of the fibres in the human body.”

In-depth knowledge of the structure and functioning of the heart muscle has a direct impact on society and especially on the diagnosis and treatment of cardiovascular diseases—one of the leading causes of death in Canada. In fact, every seven minutes, heart disease or stroke claims a Canadian life, with a total cost of over $14B. Hervé Lombaert’s human atlas of cardiac fibre architecture will, among other things, serve to better plan medical procedures including common and costly interventions, such as arrhythmic circuit ablations and cardiac resynchronizations, and improve postoperative predictions.