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Figure 1 Effects of left ventricular assist device (LVAD) support on [Ca²⁺]_i transients in cardiac myocytes from failing hearts with and without previous LVAD support. Data were collected during field stimulation at 0.5 Hz, and [Ca²⁺]_i was measured by Fluo-3 fluorescence. (A) Raw fluorescence intensity traces from representative myocytes. (B) Schematic illustrating curve-fitting technique for initial and delayed portions of the [Ca²⁺]_i transient decay. (C) Average initial and delayed time constants for the [Ca²⁺]_i transients in each of the three experimental groups (NF = non-failing; HF = failing; HF-LVAD = LVAD support). Data are expressed as mean ± SEM. *p < 0.0001 HF-only versus HF-LVAD; p < 0.001.