Qube Opto 384 – Modulation of an intracellular messenger pathway by combining automated patch clamp and optical stimulation

Nature has evolved a wide range of light-activated proteins, and in the fast-developing field of optogenetics, these have been converted into tools for studying protein function, membrane currents, and signaling pathway activation. Where automated patch clamp allows precise voltage and current control, and fast chemical modulation from the outside, activation of light-activated proteins, using the optogenetics feature, provides a new method to modulate the cell intracellularly.

Here, we employed the light-activated bacterial enzyme, bPAC, to modulate protein phosphorylation through cAMP production and evaluated the effect on the kinetics of the HCN2 ion channel.

Keywords: Qube Opto, Optical, Opto, Optogenetic