Guide to Slice Electrophysiology¶
A living guide to the theory, methods, and practical details of slice electrophysiology. Contributions welcome!
The original version of this document was published as a chapter in Basic Electrophysiological Methods (Covey et al, 2015).
Patch clamp recording in brain slices allows unparalleled access to neuronal membrane signals in a system that approximates the in-vivo neural substrate, while affording greater control of experimental conditions. In this document we discuss the theory, methodology, and practical considerations of such experiments including the initial setup, techniques for preparing and handling viable brain slices, and patching and recording signals. A number of practical and technical issues faced by electrophysiologists are also considered, including maintaining slice viability, visualizing and identifying healthy cells, acquiring reliable patch seals, amplifier compensation features, hardware configuration, sources of electrical noise and table vibration, as well as basic data analysis issues and some troubleshooting tips.
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