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Updated: Jan 31, 2026

Voltage-Dependent Potassium Current Recording on H9c2 Cardiomyocytes via the Whole-Cell Patch-Clamp Technique
Published on: November 11, 2022
Inhibitory effect of ultrasonic stimulation on the voltage-dependent potassium currents in rat hippocampal CA1
Kun Cui1,2, Shuai Zhang3,4, Jinyao Sun1,2
1State Key Laboratory of Reliability and Intelligence of Electrical Equipment, Hebei University of Technology, No. 8 Hongrong Road, Hongqiao District, Tianjin, 300132, China.
Background:
Transcranial ultrasonic stimulation is a novel noninvasive tool for neuromodulation, and has high spatial resolution and deep penetration. Although it can increase excitation of neurons, its effects on neuron are poorly understood. This study was to evaluate effect of ultrasonic stimulation (US) on neurons in vitro. In this paper, the effect of US on the excitability and voltage-dependent [Formula: see text] currents of CA1 pyramidal neurons in the rat hippocampus was studied using patch clamp.
Results:
Our results suggest that US increased the spontaneous firing rate and inhibited transient outward potassium current ([Formula: see text]) and delayed rectifier potassium current ([Formula: see text]. Furthermore, US altered the activation of [Formula: see text] channels, inactivation and recovery properties of [Formula: see text] channels. After US, the [Formula: see text] activation curves significantly moved to the negative voltage direction and increased its slope factor. Moreover, the data showed that US moved the inactivation curve of [Formula: see text] to the negative voltage and increased the slope factor. Besides, US delayed the recovery of [Formula: see text] channel.
Conclusions:
Our data indicate that US can increase excitation of neurons by inhibiting potassium currents. Different US decreased the voltage sensitivity of [Formula: see text] activation differentially. Moreover, the more time is needed for US to make the [Formula: see text] channels open again after inactivating. US may play a physiological role by inhibiting voltage-dependent potassium currents in neuromodulation. Our research can provide a theoretical basis for the future clinical application of ultrasound in neuromodulation.
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