Pulling on strings to find out just how hard it is to break a heart

Scientists can become involved in some unusual research at times, such as the group at Trinity College Dublin who decided to "pull on heart strings" to find out just how tough those strings are.

Prof Bruce Murphy and Gillian Gunning were the first researchers in the world to measure the durability of heart strings, which are actually cord-like tendons in the heart. These little cords, or chordae tendineae, are very important for a healthy heart, and leaky valves are just one consequence if they snap.

The work was accomplished at the Amber research centre, which looks at advanced materials and bioengineering research, and is funded by Science Foundation Ireland.

The scientists were literally pulling on heart strings repeatedly until they finally ruptured.

It wasn’t done to break someone’s heart, but quite the opposite. Understanding how durable these strings are tells us about their lifespan and how they can break down both in disease and as part of the ageing process.

The information will also be useful for people trying to develop the best replacement heart valves, using either natural cords transplanted from pigs or artificial valves. The work was published in the journal Acta Biomaterialia.