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Cold Spring Harbor Protocols, 2(2017), p. pdb.prot094904

DOI: 10.1101/pdb.prot094904

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Single-Cell Electroporation of Neurons

Journal article published in 2017 by J. Simon Wiegert, Christine E. Gee ORCID, Thomas G. Oertner ORCID
This paper is made freely available by the publisher.
This paper is made freely available by the publisher.

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Data provided by SHERPA/RoMEO

Abstract

Single-cell electroporation allows the transfection of a small number of neurons in an organotypic culture with a single plasmid or a defined mixture of plasmids. Desired protein expression levels can vary depending on the experimental goals (e.g., high expression levels are needed for optogenetic experiments); however, when too much protein is expressed, cellular toxicity and cell death may arise. To a large degree, protein expression can be controlled by adjusting the concentration of plasmid DNA in the electroporation pipette. Here, we present a protocol for transfecting individual neurons in hippocampal slice cultures by electroporation. Essentially, a patch-clamp setup is required that includes an upright microscope with infrared differential interference contrast or Dodt contrast with a camera and a specialized amplifier that is able to deliver large-voltage pulses to the electroporation pipette.