Amiodarone hydrochloride is an anti-anginal agent and a class III antiarrhythmic drug that inhibits potassium channels (including wild-type hERG channels and their tail currents, with an IC50 of approximately 45 nM) as well as voltage-gated sodium channels. This leads to prolonged action potential duration in ventricular and atrial myocytes, resulting in reduced heart rate and vascular resistance. It activates ERK1/2 and p38 MAPK signaling pathways in fibroblasts, promoting cell proliferation and myofibroblast differentiation. Amiodarone hydrochloride is widely used in the study of supraventricular and ventricular arrhythmias and can also be used to establish pulmonary fibrosis animal models.
