An electrophysiologic technique for studying cells, cell membranes, and occasionally isolated organelles. All patch-clamp methods rely on a very high-resistance seal between a micropipette and a membrane; the seal is usually attained by gentle suction. The four most common variants include on-cell patch, inside-out patch, outside-out patch, and whole-cell clamp. Patch-clamp methods are commonly used to voltage clamp, that is control the voltage across the membrane and measure current flow, but current-clamp methods, in which the current is controlled and the voltage is measured, are also used.

Annotation

a cytol technique for removing a tiny patch of plasma membrane; NIM

DUI

D018408 MeSH Browser

CUI

M0027637

Previous indexing

Electrophysiology (1975-1994); Ion Channels (1978-1994); Membrane Potentials (1975-1994)

History note

95

Public note

95