There is growing interest in automated patch-clamp (APC) assays for ligand-gated targets which are expressed throughout the peripheral and central nervous system. The Acid-Sensing Ion Channel (ASIC) family comprises combinations of ASIC1-4 proteins that form acid-activated cation-selective channels. ASIC channels underlie complex neurological processes and diseases such as cognition, synaptic plasticity, pain, ischemia and epilepsy. ASIC channels are subject to evolutionary predator-prey arms races as shown by potent snake and spider toxins such as Mambalgin-1 and Psalmotoxin-1.
The HESI Cardiac Safety Committee present results from an international ion channel research study that assessed the variability of hERG data generated using automated patch clamp platforms (QPatch 48, Qube 384 and the SyncroPatch 384i) across four different labs.
We developed a high-throughput, electrophysiological assay of TREK-1 function to identify novel modulators. The assay was optimized to identify both activators and inhibitors, providing comprehensive mechanistic data for high value, limited supply screening libraries, such as the venom fraction library used in this study (Targeted Venom Discovery Array, T-VDA, Venomtech, UK).