Imaging the dynamics of individual electropores
Abstract
Transient permeabilization of the cell membrane is needed to introduce genes and drugs into cells, and electroporation (the physical breakdown of a bilayer membrane under an external electric field) is the most common method to achieve this. By applying an electric field to an artificial lipid bilayer, we have been able to visualize the presence of individual electropores in the bilayer. We exploit droplet interface bilayers (formed from the contact between an aqueous droplet and a hydrogel surface immersed in a phospholipid/oil solution) to provide simultaneous single-channel electrical recording and fluorescence imaging of the bilayer.
- Publication:
-
Proceedings of the National Academy of Science
- Pub Date:
- May 2016
- DOI:
- 10.1073/pnas.1517437113
- Bibcode:
- 2016PNAS..113.5281S