![]() Its magnitude is determined by the number and conductance of the channels included in the patch and the voltage applied between the electrode immersed in the pipette and the electrode in the bath solution.īy quickly retracting the patch pipette the membrabe patch enclosed by the opening of the pipette can be excised without affecting the gigaseal connection to the cell membrane. When one of the channels opens, a small current will flow. In this cell-attached configuration the ion channels which are present in the cell membrane enclosed by the pipette opening are the only electrical connection bewteen the interior of the pipette and the interior of the cell. The seal can be enhanced by applying suction to the pipette, so that the resistance to the bath solution exceeds several GΩ. When the patch-clamp pipette is brought into close contact to the cell membrane, a tight connection between the pipette and the cell membrane forms. It is filled with electrolyte solution, into which a Ag/AgCl electrode is immersed. It is a thin glass tube, which is pulled out to a width of only some micrometers. It allows for recording of macroscopic whole-cell and microscopic single-channel currents flowing through ion channels.Ĭentral to the patch-clamp technique is the patch-clamp pipette. The patch-clamp technique is a powerful technichnique to study electrophysiological properties of biological membranes.
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