Imaging of Calcium Channels

Equipped with an advanced ion channel analysis platform, Creative Bioarray is committed to providing clients with high-quality imaging services for calcium channels using electrophysiological techniques and emerging high-resolution imaging and spectroscopic methods.

Background

Calcium channels are widely present in all types of tissue cells in the body and vary in type and physiological function in different tissue cells, or in different parts of the same tissue cell. Calcium channels are usually divided into voltage-dependent calcium channels and receptor-operated calcium channels. The different types of voltage-dependent calcium (Ca²⁺) channels (VCCs) in the plasma membrane control the entry of depolarization-induced Ca²⁺ into the cell and thus perform multiple important physiological functions, including neurotransmitter and hormone release, excitation-contraction coupling, and neuronal plasticity.

Analysis of the spatial distribution of VCCs across the plasma membrane is important for their contribution to cellular function. To detect the location of calcium channels, several different techniques have been used in a large number of studies, including electrophysiological techniques, calcium imaging, and immunocytochemical staining. At present, the strategy of new super-resolution microscope technology combined with novel calcium ion indicators and imaging methods makes it possible to visualize and quantify the activities of a single channel, providing unprecedented details for the in-depth study of the structure and function of ion channels.

Fig. 1 Detecting intracellular calcium changes through single-cell calcium imaging. (de Melo Reis, 2020)

Our Technologies

We have developed a variety of super-resolution microscopy and spectroscopy methods for calcium channel imaging.

• Total internal reflection fluorescence microscopy
• Single-molecule localization microscopies
• Simulated emission depletion microscopy
• Structured illumination microscopy
• Fluorescence correlation spectroscopy

Our Services

Researchers at Creative Bioarray are committed to developing new imaging techniques to help clients elucidate the localization and dynamic embedding of Ca²⁺ channels in the plasma membrane. Our services include but are not limited to:

• Imaging L-type calcium channels in living cells by means of fluorescent calcium antagonist tools.
• Single-molecule imaging of L-type Ca²⁺ channels in live cells.
• Single-molecule imaging
• Detection of intracellular calcium changes
• Analysis of Ca²⁺ channel clustering
• Analysis of Ca²⁺ channel mobility

• Imaging ion channel activity.

Our research team will adjust the experimental scheme according to the specific scientific research needs of customers, and provide them with efficient technical support through the combination of different technologies. For example, the combination of fluorescence imaging microscopy and other single-photon resolution spectroscopic methods offers customers the possibility to quantify protein-protein interactions between channel populations and other proteins, and the combination of imaging and electrophysiological techniques provides customers with important details to elucidate the location and dynamic behavior of thousands of channel molecules and vesicles in living cells.

Creative Bioarray has established a variety of biophysical techniques to provide our clients with calcium channel imaging services, which are expected to provide important information for clients in studying ion channel behavior, channel location, function, and more. If you are interested in our services, please contact us for more details.

Reference

1. de Melo Reis, R. A.; et al. Cell calcium imaging as a reliable method to study neuron–glial circuits. Frontiers in Neuroscience, 2020, 14: 569361.