Eric Accili

Eric Accili is an Associate Professor at the University of British Columbia, affiliated with the Faculty of Medicine and the Department of Cellular & Physiological Sciences. He holds the Canada Research Chair in Pacemaker Channel Biology and is a member of the Cardiovascular Research Group (Life Sciences Institute). His research focuses on the molecular mechanisms of pacemaker channels that regulate cellular electrical activity in heart and brain tissues.

• Postdoctoral training at University of Milan and Case Western Reserve University
• PhD and MSc in Physiology from University of British Columbia
• BSc in Cell Biology from University of British Columbia

Eric Accili's laboratory investigates hyperpolarization-activated cyclic nucleotide-gated (HCN) channels, including their structural dynamics, cyclic nucleotide binding, voltage-gated mechanisms, and roles in cardiac arrhythmias and neurological disorders like epilepsy. His team employs biophysical methods, mutational analysis, and molecular modeling to understand how these channels initiate and regulate pacemaking activity. Key findings include discoveries about the cAMP binding pocket, C-linker domain interactions, and isoform-specific regulation of HCN channels.

Recent publications highlight work on disease-associated mutations in HCN4 channels affecting sinus tachycardia, kinetic models of HCN2 gating, and evolutionary divergence patterns in Ciona intestinalis HCN channels. Collaborative studies explore glycosylation effects on receptor surface expression and allosteric coupling between activation and inactivation gates in potassium channels.

His research program is housed at the Life Sciences Institute in Vancouver, Canada, with access to advanced biophysical and structural analysis facilities. The lab continues to probe fundamental mechanisms of ion channel regulation and their implications for drug development targeting cardiac and neurological conditions.