Whole-cell and Perforated Patch-clamp Recordings from Acutely-isolated Murine Sino-atrial Node Cells

Qadeer Aziz; Muriel Nobles; Andrew Tinker

doi:10.21769/BioProtoc.3478

Whole-cell and Perforated Patch-clamp Recordings from Acutely-isolated Murine Sino-atrial Node Cells

Bio Protoc. 2020 Jan 5;10(1):e3478. doi: 10.21769/BioProtoc.3478.

Authors

Qadeer Aziz¹, Muriel Nobles¹, Andrew Tinker¹

Affiliation

¹ Clinical Pharmacology, William Harvey Research Institute, Barts and the London School of Medicine and Dentistry, Queen Mary University of London, London, UK.

Abstract

Cardiac pacemaker cells of the sino-atrial node are responsible for the initiation of the heart beat and express an array of ion channels. The patch-clamp technique is the gold standard method for investigating the function of ion channels expressed in electrically active cells. Conventional whole-cell and perforated patch-clamp techniques can be used to investigate ionic currents in the voltage-clamp mode and changes in membrane potential (e.g., action potential) in the current-clamp mode. Here, we provide details of protocols used to measure spontaneous and triggered action potentials and whole-cell funny current If (HCN4) in single cardiomyocytes isolated from the mouse sino-atrial node (SAN).

Keywords: KATP current; Action potential; Cardiac pacemaker; Cardiomyocytes; Funny current; Sinoatrial node.

Abstract

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