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Monitoring ion activities in and around cells using ion-selective liquid-membrane microelectrodes

  • Case Western Reserve University

Research output: Contribution to journalReview articlepeer-review

31 Scopus citations

Abstract

Determining the effective concentration (i.e., activity) of ions in and around living cells is important to our understanding of the contribution of those ions to cellular function. Moreover, monitoring changes in ion activities in and around cells is informative about the actions of the transporters and/or channels operating in the cell membrane. The activity of an ion can be measured using a glass microelectrode that includes in its tip a liquid-membrane doped with an ion-selective ionophore. Because these electrodes can be fabricated with tip diameters that are less than 1 μm, they can be used to impale single cells in order to monitor the activities of intracellular ions. This review summarizes the history, theory, and practice of ion-selective microelectrode use and brings together a number of classic and recent examples of their usefulness in the realm of physiological study.

Original languageEnglish
Pages (from-to)984-1003
Number of pages20
JournalSensors
Volume13
Issue number1
DOIs
StatePublished - Jan 2013

Keywords

  • ISM
  • LIX
  • Nernst equation

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