Network-level extracellular electrophysiology for cardiac safety screening and neuronal pharmacology in multi-well format.
Multi-Electrode Array: Network Electrophysiology
Multi-Electrode Array (MEA) technology enables non-invasive, long-duration extracellular recordings from intact cellular networks. Unlike patch clamp, which measures currents through individual ion channels in isolated cells, MEA records the collective electrical activity of spontaneously active cell populations — capturing action potential spikes, burst patterns, field potentials, and network synchrony in real time.
Key Features
Technical Capabilities
6-well formats — multi-well MEA plates following standard laboratory footprints for compatibility with liquid handling
Up to 12 electrodes per well — simultaneous recording of network-level activity with internal reference electrode in each well
50 kHz sampling rate per channel — high-fidelity capture of fast action potential waveforms and field potential dynamics
Integrated stimulation — voltage-driven electrical stimulation through any selected electrode for evoked response experiments
Non-invasive, label-free — cells remain intact for longitudinal studies, repeat measurements, and chronic compound exposure
Applications at ChanPharm
MEA is the method of choice when network-level readouts matter — capturing emergent electrical behaviour that single-cell patch clamp cannot access. Key use cases include:
Cardiac safety pharmacology: Field potential duration (FPD), beat rate, conduction velocity, and arrhythmia detection in human iPSC-derived cardiomyocytes. Compound-induced changes in FPD serve as a surrogate for QT interval prolongation, complementing hERG patch clamp data as part of a comprehensive CiPA-aligned cardiac safety package.
Pro-arrhythmia risk assessment: Detection of early afterdepolarisations (EADs), triggered activity, and irregular beating patterns induced by test compounds — readouts that are inaccessible to single-channel electrophysiology methods.
Neuronal network pharmacology: Quantification of spontaneous spiking and burst activity in hiPSC-derived neurons, primary cortical or DRG cultures. Compound effects on network excitability, synchrony, and firing rate provide a functional neurotoxicity or neuropharmaology readout.
Dose-response profiling: Concentration-response analysis of compound effects on cardiac or neuronal network activity in 6-well format, enabling efficient IC50 determination across multiple parameters simultaneously.
Chronic and wash-in/wash-out studies: Non-destructive recording allows repeated measurements of the same wells over hours or days, enabling studies of tolerance, compound reversibility, and long-term cellular adaptation.
Throughput & Workflow
MEA vs. Patch Clamp
MEA — network recordings; non-invasive, label-free; ideal for cardiac safety and neurotoxicity panels
Automated patch clamp — single-cell resolution, ion channel specificity; quantitative IC50 and biophysical characterization
Combined MEA + patch clamp — ChanPharm's integrated approach delivers both network-level and channel-level data for comprehensive compound characterization
MEA and patch clamp are complementary rather than competing technologies. ChanPharm routinely combines both modalities to deliver multi-level electrophysiological characterization: MEA provides the functional network context while automated and manual patch clamp resolves the underlying ion channel mechanisms.