Patch Pipette Technique
Patch Pipette Technique - Related Videos
05:30
Making Patch-pipettes and Sharp Electrodes with a Programmable Puller
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Cited by 22 •
2008
This video shows how to use a programmable puller to make patch pipettes and sharp electrodes for electrophysiology. The same procedure can be used to make a variety of glass tools, including injection needles.
05:12
Pressure-polishing Pipettes for Improved Patch-clamp Recording
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Cited by 13 •
2008
This is a guide to modifying the shape of glass micropipettes. Specifically, by using heat and air pressure the taper is widened without increasing the tip opening, leading to lower pipette resistance. This is critical to obtain low noise recordings of small cells but is useful in many applications.
08:08
Odorant-induced Responses Recorded from Olfactory Receptor Neurons using the Suction Pipette Technique
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Cited by 13 •
2012
Olfactory receptor neurons (ORNs) convert odor signals first into a receptor current that in turn triggers action potentials that are conveyed to second order neurons in the olfactory bulb. Here we describe the suction pipette technique to record simultaneously the odorant-induced receptor current and action potentials from mouse ORNs.
11:43
Aseptic Laboratory Techniques: Volume Transfers with Serological Pipettes and Micropipettors
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Cited by 24 •
2012
When working in a laboratory, it is imperative to minimize sources of contamination. Aseptic technique refers to procedures that permit transfer of cultures and reagents while avoiding contact with non-sterile surfaces. Serological pipettes and micropipettors are used to measure precise volumes without compromising sterility of solutions used in experiments.
10:19
Patch Clamp and Perfusion Techniques for Studying Ion Channels Expressed in Xenopus oocytes
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Cited by 1 •
2011
Ionic current of BK channels is recorded using patch clamp techniques. BK channels are expressed in Xenopus oocytes by injecting messenger RNA. The intracellular solution during patch clamp recordings is controlled by a perfusion system.
FAQs
A high-resistance seal limits unwanted electrical leakage between the pipette and the cell membrane, allowing small membrane currents or voltage changes to be detected with high sensitivity. Gentle suction is important because it can convert the initial cell-attached arrangement into whole-cell or excised-patch recording. The selected configuration determines whether measurements emphasize the intact cell or a membrane patch.
Voltage-clamp and current-clamp recordings impose different experimental controls. Voltage clamp holds membrane voltage while measuring the resulting electrical current, making it useful for examining ion-channel or synaptic current behavior. Current clamp instead injects or controls current and observes membrane-potential changes, helping assess cellular excitability. Choosing between them links the measurement to the physiological question.
Patch Pipette Technique configurations provide different views of membrane function. Cell-attached recording preserves the broader cell while monitoring a membrane-associated patch. Whole-cell recording extends access to the cell’s electrical behavior, including membrane potential and synaptic currents. Excised-patch recording isolates a membrane patch, which is useful when the focus is localized ion-channel activity rather than integrated cellular signaling.
An experiment begins by filling a glass micropipette with conductive solution and bringing it into contact with the cell membrane. The researcher forms a high-resistance seal, then applies gentle suction when a different configuration is required. After establishing the configuration, voltage-clamp or current-clamp recording is selected to measure currents, membrane potential, or excitability.
Neuroscientists apply the method to questions that require measurements from individual cells. In neural-circuit studies, it can reveal how signaling changes across connected elements; in sensory research, it can characterize cellular responses. The same approach supports testing pharmacological effects and examining disease-related alterations in neuronal function, connecting membrane-level measurements with broader changes in neural processing.
The recordings can produce several complementary outcomes rather than a single electrical readout. Ion-channel activity describes membrane electrical events, synaptic currents indicate signals arriving through neuronal communication, membrane potential reports the cell’s electrical state, and excitability reflects how readily the cell responds electrically. Together, these measurements help distinguish changes in membrane mechanisms from changes in overall neuronal behavior.