Referenced in: none

Automatically associated channels: Kv11.1

Title: Manual whole-cell patch-clamping of the HERG cardiac K+ channel.

Authors: Xiao-Liang Chen, Jiesheng Kang, David Rampe

Journal, date & volume: Methods Mol. Biol., 2011 , 691, 151-63

PubMed link: http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/20972752

Abstract
Delayed ventricular repolarization, as measured by a prolongation of the QT interval on the electrocardiogram, is a major safety issue in the drug development process. It is now recognized that most cases of drug-induced QT prolongation arise from direct pharmacological inhibition of the human ether-a-go-go-related gene (HERG) cardiac K+ channel. It is standard practice to test a drug's ability to interact with the HERG channel prior to entry into clinical trials. This testing is used, as part of a larger battery of tests, to help predict the cardiac safety profile of a drug. Manual whole-cell patch-clamping provides the most sensitive and accurate way to examine the biophysical and pharmacological properties of the HERG cardiac K+ channel.