Editing Patch clamp (section)

{{Short description|Laboratory technique in electrophysiology}}
[[File:Patchclamp Spheroplast1.jpg|thumb|right|A bacterial [[spheroplast]] patched with a glass pipette]]
[[File:Single channel.png|thumb|270 px|right|A patch clamp recording of current reveals transitions between two conductance states of a single ion channel: closed (at top) and open (at bottom).]]

The '''patch clamp technique''' is a [[laboratory technique]] in [[electrophysiology]] used to study ionic currents in individual [[Cell isolation|isolated living cells]], tissue sections, or patches of cell membrane. The technique is especially useful in the study of excitable cells such as [[neuron]]s, [[cardiomyocyte]]s, [[muscle fiber]]s, and [[pancreas|pancreatic]] [[beta cell]]s, and can also be applied to the study of [[bacteria]]l ion channels in specially prepared giant [[spheroplasts]].

Patch clamping can be performed using the [[voltage clamp]] technique.  In this case, the voltage across the cell membrane is controlled by the experimenter and the resulting currents are recorded.  Alternatively, the [[Electrophysiology|current clamp]] technique can be used.  In this case, the current passing across the membrane is controlled by the experimenter and the resulting changes in voltage are recorded, generally in the form of [[action potential]]s.

[[Erwin Neher]] and [[Bert Sakmann]] developed the patch clamp in the late 1970s and early 1980s. This discovery made it possible to record the currents of single ion channel molecules for the first time, which improved understanding of the involvement of channels in fundamental cell processes such as action potentials and nerve activity. Neher and Sakmann received the [[Nobel Prize in Physiology or Medicine]] in 1991 for this work.<ref name=Neher>{{cite web|title=The Nobel Prize in Physiology or Medicine 1991|url=https://www.nobelprize.org/nobel_prizes/medicine/laureates/1991/|website=nobelprize.org|publisher=Nobel Media AB|access-date=November 8, 2014}}</ref>