• Faster data generation
• Independent of user skills
• Learn to operate in a few hours
• Objective selection of cells

You probably know the feeling that you don’t want anybody to tamper with your manual rig once it is ‘just right’ and free of noise. Right? QPatch Compact is developed to combine the flexibility of manual patch clamping with the robustness, ease, and simplicity of automated patch clamp.

• No electrical grounding issues
• No micromanipulator drift
• No need for an electrode puller – always ready to use
• No antivibration table
• No noise from unidentified, errant sources
• No compound carry-over in silicon tubing

Initially, you will probably conduct one experiment at a time, but you can execute up to 8 experiments simultaneously with a bit of training. This generates data faster en route to your next Nature publication.

The software helps you set up and analyze experiments. All you have to do is prepare the cells and handle the pipetting of solutions, guided by the instrument. That way, you can learn about ion channels and their biophysics without losing valuable time to technological barriers.

• More data, faster
• Automated analysis
• Objective replication

We have all worked with manual patch-clamp and felt the kick when getting good seals and crisp, noise-free recordings, but we have also had days where annoying noise kept interfering no matter how much tinfoil you wrapped around the tubes or how many spots on your microscope you grounded.

Imagine a benchtop instrument that you simply plug in and conduct your experiments without needing an antivibration table or Faraday cage.

• Stable recordings
• Integrated system
• Small footprint
• Giga-seal on demand

The QPlate is unique with its microflow-based design and silicon-coated lining, ensuring efficient compound exchange and gigaohm seals without using seal enhancers.

Some APC manufacturers rely on seal enhancers to achieve consistent gigaohm seal formation. We don’t. Silicon surfaces in the QPlate promote high sealing and a low propensity to stick to compounds.

• Giga-Ω seals in physiological solutions
• Microfluidic channels for precise liquid handling
• Minute compound quantities required
• Ready-to-use, individual, built-in electrode pairs
• Accurate concentration at the cell

Only 2 µL of liquid surrounding the cell is patched in a QPlate 8 recording plate. The exchange happens wholly and quickly when the next liquid is introduced to ensure precise control over the cell’s microenvironment. This is important for studying the ion channel’s kinetics and preventing desensitization due to over-exposure to higher-than-wanted concentrations. The latter will happen in an open-well architecture where you rely on an in-well dilution to occur uncontrolled.

• Microfluidics channels. Add the concentration you want.
• No overshoot of concentration
• More control, less desensitization
• Fast exchange of liquid