Human Hearts Respond Differently Than Mouse Hearts to Two Cardiovascular Drugs, Washington University Study

Anyone who follows science has read enthusiastic stories about medical breakthroughs that include the standard disclaimer that the results were obtained in mice and might not carry over to humans. Much later, there might be reports that a drug has been abandoned because clinical trials turned up unforeseen side effects or responses in humans. Given the delay, most readers probably don't connect the initial success and the eventual failure. But Igor Efimov, PhD, a biomedical engineer at Washington University in St. Louis who studies the biophysical and physiological mechanisms that underlie heart rhythm disorders, is acutely aware of the failure of once-promising drugs to pass clinical trials.