Ion Channel Screening Service

Ion channels are pore-forming proteins that are located within the membrane of most cells and of many intracellular organelles. Their functions include maintaining a resting membrane potential, conducting action potentials and other electrical signals. They are characterized by their selective permeability - the ability to allow only certain sized/charged ions to pass through; thus playing vital roles in various physiological activities. These features make themselves become perfect targets in the process of novel drug development. 

Profacgen provides professional ion channel screening service to help your preliminary studies in drug development. Our services include identification of potential hits for established target ion channel and novel ion channel cell model development.

There have been hundreds of different types of ion channels discovered so far. Ion channels can be classified into voltage-gated channels and ligand-gated channels based on gating, i.e. the stimuli that is responsible for opening and closing the channels. Ion channels can be also classified by their ion permeability, such as chloride channels, potassium channels, sodium channels, calcium channels, proton channels and non-selective cation channels. Besides, ion channels are also classified on the basis of subcellular localization, such as plasma membrane channels and intracellular channels.

Ion channels play extensive biological roles in a wide variety of biological processes such as cardiac, skeletal and smooth muscle contraction, nutrient transportation and T-cell activation. Up to now, approximately 20% of the registered drugs are targeted for ion channels.

Profacgen has developed a long list of ion channel assay models with efficient signal read-out and good stability. We provide a comprehensive package of service from ion channel screening, active/inhibitory compound validation, and specificity analysis to electrophysiology detection. Specifically, our ion channel assay models include sodium channels, TRP channels, potassium channels, calcium channels, P2X channels and other channels.

Profacgen offers both direct methods and indirect methods to help the study on your target ion channels. As a direct method, patch clamp is normally used in our lab, which is credited as a gold standard in ion channel research. As for indirect methods, we offer fluorescent dye based detection assays, in which fluorescent dye is loaded into cells and then analyzed by specialized plate readers. The readers can detect the concentration change of certain ions caused by ion flow through the channel. You can choose fluorescence assay combined with ion-work based high-throughput screening, or physiological characterization by conventional patch clamp electrophysiology or automated electrophysiology according to your specific requirements.

You can also refer to the instruction manual attached to learn about the ion channel cell models we have developed so far and an example for the assay format available.

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Please contact us for more details of our preclinical ion channel screening service. Our experts will provide you an optimal solution for your ion channel screening project and trouble-shooting for you throughout the whole process.