Abstract
Patch-clamping is a powerful technique for investigating the ion channel function and regulation. However, its low throughput hampered profiling of large compound series in early drug development. Fortunately, automation has revolutionized the area of experimental electrophysiology over the past decade. Whereas the first automated patch-clamp instruments using the planar patch-clamp technology demonstrated rather a moderate throughput, few second-generation automated platforms recently launched by various companies have significantly increased ability to form a high number of high-resistance seals. Among them is SyncroPatch® 96 (Nanion Technologies GmbH, Munich, Germany), a fully automated giga-seal patch-clamp system with the highest throughput on the market. By recording from up to 96 cells simultaneously, the SyncroPatch® 96 allows to substantially increase throughput without compromising data quality. This chapter describes features of the innovative automated electrophysiology system and protocols used for a successful transfer of the established hERG assay to this high-throughput automated platform.
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Acknowledgments
The author would like to thank the Nanion Technologies GmbH team, especially Drs. Andrea Brüggemann, Sonja Stoelzle, and Timo Stengel, for their help. I am also grateful to Drs. Claudia McGinnis and Thomas Weiser from Roche Non-Clinical Safety for supporting the acquisition and validation of the system, and to Evgenia Gissinger for technical assistance.
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© 2014 Springer Science+Business Media New York
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Polonchuk, L. (2014). Industrializing Electrophysiology: HT Automated Patch Clamp on SyncroPatch® 96 Using Instant Frozen Cells. In: Martina, M., Taverna, S. (eds) Patch-Clamp Methods and Protocols. Methods in Molecular Biology, vol 1183. Humana Press, New York, NY. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-1-4939-1096-0_5
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DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/978-1-4939-1096-0_5
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Publisher Name: Humana Press, New York, NY
Print ISBN: 978-1-4939-1095-3
Online ISBN: 978-1-4939-1096-0
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