Automation Systems
The automation technique changes depending on the surrounding environment of the cells. For cells in vivo, this typically means that the cells are in the brain and surrounded by other cells. This environment also contains blood vessels, dendrites, axons, and glial cells which make it harder to form a gigaseal by clogging the 1-2μm diameter pipette tip. Here, the precise pressure and position control at the pipette tip plays a big role in preventing clogging and detecting whether a cell is near the tip of the pipette as discussed above.
Cells in vitro can be suspended in a fluid, adhered to a culture dish, or be part of a piece of tissue that has been removed from the animal. These environments typically don't have to compensate for motion of the tissue due to the heartbeat or breathing of an animal. In the case of cells in suspension, the pipette is completely replaced with a microchip with holes that can create gigaseals and measure the electrical activity. Clogging is also less of an issue for cells or tissue in culture dishes because the cells and pipette can be seen through a microscope which helps the technician avoid everything but the cell of interest.
However, the automation systems all have to perform several tasks in common. They must position the cell next to tip of a pipette or some other device with a 1-2μm hole, control the pressure at the hole, and control the voltage inside the cell.
Read more about this topic: Automated Patch Clamp
Famous quotes containing the words automation and/or systems:
“Besides black art, there is only automation and mechanization.”
—Federico García Lorca (1898–1936)
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—Don Delillo (b. 1926)