Molecular Mechanisms of L-Type Calcium Channel Dysregulation in Heart Failure

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Abstract
The L-type calcium channels (LTCCs) function as the main entry points that convert myocyte membrane depolarization into calcium transients, which drive every heartbeat. There is increasing evidence to show that maladaptive remodeling of these channels is the cause of heart failure with reduced ejection fraction (HFrEF) and heart failure with preserved ejection fraction (HFpEF). Recent experimental, translational, and clinical studies have improved our understanding of the roles LTCC expression, micro-domain trafficking, and post-translational control have in disrupting excitation–contraction coupling, provoking arrhythmias, and shaping phenotype specific hemodynamic compromise. We performed a systematic search of the PubMed and Google Scholar databases (2015–2025, English) and critically evaluated 17 eligible publications in an effort to organize the expanding body of work. This review combines existing data about LTCC density and T-tubule architecture with β-adrenergic and Ca2⁺/calmodulin-dependent protein kinase II (CaMKII) signaling and downstream sarcoplasmic reticulum crosstalk to explain how HFrEF presents with contractile insufficiency and how HFpEF shows diastolic calcium overload and stiffening. Additionally, we highlight the emerging therapeutic strategies aimed at restoring calcium homeostasis such as CaMKII inhibitors, ryanodine receptor type 2 (RyR2) stabilizers, and selective LTCC modulators without compromising systolic reserve. The review establishes LTCC dysregulation as a single mechanism that causes myocardial dysfunction while remaining specific to each phenotype, thus offering clinicians and researchers a complete reference for current concepts and future precision therapy approaches in heart failure.
Funding Information
  • School of Medicine Library Open Article Fund

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