Dr. Demir will start her talk by introducing mathematics and engineering used to develop computational models of cellular bioelectric activity. She will also give an overview of her research interests in cardiac pacemaker cells and ventricular cells. She will present her computational modeling projects in rat ventricular myocytes. Recently, Dr. Demir’s research group has developed and published a biophysically detailed model of the rat ventricular myocytes and demonstrated a precise understanding of the role of various ionic currents, exchangers and pumps, and calcium changes in influencing the cardiac repolarization process and the action potential prolongation under different pathological conditions. Their modeling efforts in rat ventricle were also extended into mathematical model development of mouse ventricular action potential, and their simulation results conclude that the differences in three potassium currents (I_t, I_ss, I_KSlow) can be responsible for the action potential differences in rat and mouse ventricles.

    Towards the end of her presentation, Dr, Demir will give a demonstration of iCell, the interactive cell modeling resource that she has developed as a simulation-based teaching and learning tool for electrophysiology by integrating research and education. Her interactive cell modeling web site can be accessed freely over the internet at http://ssd1.bme.memphis.edu/icell/. This JAVA-based platform-independent software, iCell, provides an interactive and user-friendly teaching and learning resource, and also a collaboration environment for electrophysiology to be shared and disseminated over the Internet.