Skip to main content
SpringerLink
Log in

Membrane Noise Analysis

  • Chapter
Excitable Cells in Tissue Culture

Abstract

The fundamental units of excitability are membrane ionic channels. Excitation requires fast switches in membrane permeability, and these are effected by channels that are ion-selective and can be “gated” open and closed. A variety of experimental methods have contributed to establishing the present picture of discrete channels of molecular dimensions, each capable of carrying a rather high ion flux. In this chapter, we discuss an experimental method, membrane noise analysis, which allows one to estimate the ionic currents carried by individual channels. The reason gated ionic channels give rise to a special type of electrical noise is that channels can open and close at random under steadystate conditions. Because the ion flux through a single channel is relatively large, random channel transitions generate observable electrical current fluctuations. These characteristic current fluctuations, often called channel noise, can be distinguished from other types of electrical noise which may be generated in an excitable-cell preparation.

This is a preview of subscription content, log in via an institution to check access.

Access this chapter

Log in via an institution
Chapter
USD 29.95
Price excludes VAT (USA)
  • Available as PDF
  • Read on any device
  • Instant download
  • Own it forever
eBook
USD 39.99
Price excludes VAT (USA)
  • Available as PDF
  • Read on any device
  • Instant download
  • Own it forever
Softcover Book
USD 54.99
Price excludes VAT (USA)
  • Compact, lightweight edition
  • Dispatched in 3 to 5 business days
  • Free shipping worldwide - see info

Tax calculation will be finalised at checkout

Purchases are for personal use only

Institutional subscriptions

Preview

Unable to display preview. Download preview PDF.

Unable to display preview. Download preview PDF.

References

  • Adams, P. R., 1977, Relaxation experiments using bath-applied suberyldicholine, J. Physiol. (Lond.) 268:271–289.

    CAS  Google Scholar 

  • Akaike, N., Fishman, H. M., Lee, K. S., Moore, L. E., and Brown, A. M., 1978, The units of calcium conduction in helix neurones, Nature 274:379–382.

    Article  PubMed  CAS  Google Scholar 

  • Alvarez, D., Latorre, R., and Verdugo, R., 1975, Kinetic characteristics of the excitability-inducing material channel in oxidized cholesterol and brain lipid membranes, J. Gen. Physiol. 65:421–439.

    Article  PubMed  CAS  Google Scholar 

  • Anderson, C. R., and Stevens, C. F., 1973, Voltage clamp analysis of acetylcholine produced current fluctuations at frog neuromuscular junction, J. Physiol. (Lond.) 235:655–691.

    CAS  Google Scholar 

  • Anderson, C. R., Cull-Candy, S. G., and Miledi, R., 1976, Glutamate and quisqualate noise in voltage-clamped locust muscle fibres, Nature 261:151–152.

    Article  PubMed  CAS  Google Scholar 

  • Barker, J. L., and McBurney, R. N., 1979, GABA and glycine may share the same conductance channel on cultured mammalian neurones, Nature 277:234–236.

    Article  PubMed  CAS  Google Scholar 

  • Baylor, D. A., Hodgkin, A. L., and Lamb, T. D., 1974, The electrical response of turtle cones to flashes and steps of light, J. Physiol. (Lond.) 242:685–727.

    CAS  Google Scholar 

  • Beginisich, T., and Stevens, C. F., 1975, How many conductance states do potassium channels have? Biophys. J. 15: 843–846.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Bendat, J. S., and Piersol, A. G., 1971, Random Data: Analysis and Measurement Procedures, Wiley-Interscience, New York.

    Google Scholar 

  • Bevan, S., Kullberg, R. W., and Rice, J., 1978, Acetylcholine-induced conductance fluctuations in cultured human myotubes, Nature 273:469–470.

    Article  PubMed  CAS  Google Scholar 

  • Cochran, W. T., Cooley, J. W., Favin, D. L., Helms, H. D., Kaenel, R. A., Lang, W. W., Maling, G. C., Jr., Nelson, D. E., Rader, C. M., and Welch, P. D., 1967, What is the fast Fourier transform?, Proc. IEEE 55:1664–1674.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Colquhoun, D., and Hawkes, A. G., 1977, Relaxation and fluctuation of membrane currents that flow through drug-operated channels, Proc. R. Soc. London B199:231–262.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Colquhoun, D., Dionne, V. E., Steinbach, J. H., and Stevens, C. F., 1975, Conductance of channels opened by acetylcholine-like drugs in muscle end-plate, Nature 253:204–206.

    Article  PubMed  CAS  Google Scholar 

  • Conti, F., and Wanke, E., 1975, Channel noise in nerve membrane and lipid bilayers, Q. Rev. Biophys. 8:451–506.

    Article  PubMed  CAS  Google Scholar 

  • Conti, F., DeFelice, L. J., and Wanke, E., 1975, Potassium and sodium ion current noise in the membrane of the squid giant axon, J. Physiol. (Lond.) 248:45–82.

    CAS  Google Scholar 

  • Conti, F., Hille, B., Neumcke, B., Nonner, W., and Stämpfli, R., 1976a, Measurement of the conductance of the sodium channel from current fluctuations at the node of Ranvier, J. Physiol. (Lond.) 262:699–727.

    CAS  Google Scholar 

  • Conti, F., Hille, B., Neumcke, B., Nonner, W., and Stämpfli, R., 1976b, Conductance of the sodium channel in myelinated nerve fibres with modified sodium inactivation, J. Physiol. (Lond.) 262:729–742.

    CAS  Google Scholar 

  • Crawford, A. C., and McBurney, R. N., 1976, On the elementary conductance event produced by l-glutamate and quanta of the natural transmitter at the neuromuscular junctions of Maia squindo, J. Physiol. (Lond.) 259:205–225.

    Google Scholar 

  • Cull-Candy, S. G., Miledi, R., and Trautmann, A., 1978, Acetylcholine-induced channels and transmitter release at human endplates, Nature 271:74–75.

    Article  PubMed  CAS  Google Scholar 

  • DeFelice, L. J., 1977, Fluctuation analysis in neurobiology, Int. Rev. Neurobiol. 20:169–208.

    Article  PubMed  CAS  Google Scholar 

  • DeFelice, L. J., and Firth, D. P., 1971, Spontaneous voltage fluctuations in glass microelectrodes, IEEE Trans. Biomed. Eng. 18:339–351.

    Article  PubMed  CAS  Google Scholar 

  • Derksen, H. E., 1965, Axon membrane voltage fluctuations, Acta Physiol. Pharmacol. Neerl. 13:373–466.

    PubMed  Google Scholar 

  • Derksen, H. E., and Verveen, A. A., 1966, Fluctuations of resting neural membrane potential, Science 151:1388–1389.

    Article  PubMed  CAS  Google Scholar 

  • Dionne, V. E., and Ruff, R. L., 1977, Endplate current fluctuations reveal only one channel type at frog neuromuscular junction, Nature 266:263–265.

    Article  PubMed  CAS  Google Scholar 

  • Dionne, V. E., and Stevens, C. F., 1975, Voltage dependence of agonist effectiveness of the frog neuromuscular junction: Resolution of a paradox, J. Physiol. (Lond.) 251:245–270.

    CAS  Google Scholar 

  • Dodge, F. A., Jr., Knight, B. W., and Toyoda, J., 1968, Voltage noise in Limulus visual cells, Science 160:88–90.

    Article  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  • Dreyer, F., Müller, K. D., Peper, K., and Sterz, R., 1976a, The M. Omohyoideus of the mouse as a convenient mammalian muscle preparation, Pflügers Arch. 367:115–122.

    Article  PubMed  CAS  Google Scholar 

  • Dreyer, F., Walther, G., and Peper, K., 1976b, Junctional and extra junctional acetylcholine receptors in normal and denervated frog muscle fibers, Pflügers Arch. 366:1–9.

    Article  PubMed  CAS  Google Scholar 

  • Dudel, J., Finger, W., and Stettmeier, H., 1977, GABA-induced membrane current noise and the time course of the inhibitory synaptic current in crayfish muscle, Neurosci. Lett. 6:203–208.

    Article  PubMed  CAS  Google Scholar 

  • Ehrenstein, G., and Lecar, H., 1977, Electrically gated ionic channels in lipid bilayers, Q. Rev. Biophys. 10:1–34.

    Article  PubMed  CAS  Google Scholar 

  • Ehrenstein, G., Lecar, H., and Nossal, R., 1970, The nature of the negative resistance in biomolecular lipid membranes containing excitability inducing material, J. Gen. Physiol. 55:119–133.

    Article  PubMed  CAS  Google Scholar 

  • Eisenberg, M., Hall, J. E., and Mead, C. A., 1973, The nature of the voltage-dependent conductance induced by alamethicin in black lipid membranes, J. Membr. Biol. 14:143–176.

    Article  PubMed  CAS  Google Scholar 

  • Fischbach, G. D., and Lass, Y., 1978a, Acetylcholine noise in cultured chick myoballs, J. Physiol. (Lond.) 280:515–526.

    CAS  Google Scholar 

  • Fischbach, G. D., and Lass, Y., 1978b, A transition temperature for acetylcholine channel conductance in chick myoballs, J. Physiol. (Lond.) 280:527–536.

    CAS  Google Scholar 

  • Fishman, H. M., 1973, Relaxation spectra of potassium channel noise from squid axon membranes, Proc. Natl. Acad. Sci. USA 70:876–879.

    Article  PubMed  CAS  Google Scholar 

  • Fishman, H.M., and Moore, L. E., 1977, Ion movements and kinetics in squid axon. II. Spontaneous electrical fluctuations, Ann. NY. Acad. Sci. 303:399–423.

    PubMed  CAS  Google Scholar 

  • Gage, P. W., McBurney, R. N., and Schneider, G. T., 1975, Effects of some aliphatic alcohols on the conductance change caused by a quantum of acetylcholine at the toad end-plate, J. Physiol. (Lond.) 244:409–429.

    CAS  Google Scholar 

  • Gardner, M., 1978, White and brown music, fractal curves and one-over-f fluctuations, Sci. Am. 239 (April): 16–31.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Hagins, W. A., 1965, Electrical signs of information flow in photoreceptors, Cold Spring Harbor Symp. Quant. Biol. 30:403–418.

    Article  PubMed  CAS  Google Scholar 

  • Hill, T. L., and Chen, Y. D., 1972, On the theory of ion transport across the nerve membrane. IV. Noise from the open-close kinetics of K+ channels, Biophys. J. 12:948–959.

    Article  PubMed  CAS  Google Scholar 

  • Jackson, M. B., and Lecar, H., 1979, Single postsynaptic channel currents in tissue cultured muscle, Nature 282:863–864.

    Article  PubMed  CAS  Google Scholar 

  • Kam, Z., Shore, H. B., and Feher, G., 1975, Simple schemes for measuring autocorrelation functions, Rev. Sci. Instrum. 46:269–277.

    Article  CAS  Google Scholar 

  • Katz, B., and Miledi, R., 1972, The statistical nature of the acetylcholine potential and its molecular components, J. Physiol. (Lond.) 224:665–699.

    CAS  Google Scholar 

  • Katz, B., and Miledi, R., 1973, The characteristics of “endplate noise” produced by different depolarizing drugs, J. Physiol. (Lond.) 230:707–717.

    CAS  Google Scholar 

  • Katz, B., and Miledi, R., 1975, The effect of procaine on the action of acetylcholine at the neuromuscular junction, J. Physiol. (Lond.) 249:269–284.

    CAS  Google Scholar 

  • Keynes, R. D., 1975, Organization of the ionic channels in nerve membranes, in: The Nervous System (D. R. Tower, ed.), Vol. I: The Basic Neurosciences, pp. 165–175, Raven Press, New York.

    Google Scholar 

  • Kittel, C., 1961, Elementary Statistical Physics, John Wiley & Sons, New York.

    Google Scholar 

  • Krawczyk, S., 1978, Ionic channel formation in a living cell membrane, Nature 273:56–57.

    Article  PubMed  CAS  Google Scholar 

  • Kuffler, S. W., and Nicholls, J. G., 1976, From Neuron to Brain, Sinauer Associates, Sunderland, Massachusetts.

    Google Scholar 

  • Lamb, T. D., and Simon, E. J., 1977, Analysis of electrical noise in turtle cones, J. Physiol. (Lond.) 272:435–468.

    CAS  Google Scholar 

  • Lass, Y., and Fischbach, G. D., 1976, A discontinuous relationship between the acetylcholine-activated channel conductance and temperature, Nature 263:150–151.

    Article  PubMed  CAS  Google Scholar 

  • Latorre, R., Alvarez, O., Ehrenstein, G., Espinoza, M., and Reyes, J., 1975, The nature of the voltage-dependent conductance of the hemocyanin channel, J. Membr. Biol. 25:163–182.

    Article  PubMed  CAS  Google Scholar 

  • Lecar, H., and Nossal, R., 1971, Theory of threshold fluctuations in nerves, Biophys. J. 11:1048–1067, 1068-1083.

    Article  PubMed  CAS  Google Scholar 

  • Lecar, H., Ehrenstein, G., and Latorre, R., 1975, Mechanism for channel gating in excitable bilayers, Ann. N.Y. Acad. Sci. 264:304–313.

    Article  PubMed  CAS  Google Scholar 

  • Lee, Y. W., 1960, Statistical Communication Theory, John Wiley & Sons, New York.

    Google Scholar 

  • Lindemann, B., and Van Driessche, W., 1977, Sodium specific membrane channels of frog skin are pores: Current fluctuations reveal high turnover, Science 195:292–294.

    Article  PubMed  CAS  Google Scholar 

  • Loewenstein, W. R., Kanno, Y., and Socolar, S. J., 1978, Quantum jumps of conductance during formation of membrane channels at cell-cell junction, Nature 274:133–136.

    Article  PubMed  CAS  Google Scholar 

  • Machlup, S., 1954, Spectrum of a two-parameter random signal, J. Appl. Phys. 25:341–343.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Magleby, K. L., and Stevens, C. F., 1972, A quantitative description of end-plate currents, J. Physiol. (Lond.) 223:173–197.

    CAS  Google Scholar 

  • McBurney, R. N., and Barker, J. L., 1978, Gaba-induced conductance fluctuations in cultured spinal neurones, Nature 274:596–597.

    Article  PubMed  CAS  Google Scholar 

  • Mueller, P., Rudin, D. O., Tien, H. T., and Wescott, W. C., 1962, Reconstitution of excitable cell membrane structure in vitro, Circulation 26:1167–1177.

    CAS  Google Scholar 

  • Neher, E., and Sakmann, B., 1976a, Noise analysis of drug induced voltage clamp currents in denervated frog muscle fibres, J. Physiol. (Lond.) 258:705–729.

    CAS  Google Scholar 

  • Neher, E., and Sakmann, B., 1976b, Single-channel currents recorded from membrane of denervated frog muscle fibers, Nature 260:799–802.

    Article  PubMed  CAS  Google Scholar 

  • Neher, E., and Steinbach, H. H., 1978, Local anaesthetics transiently block currents through single acetylcholine-receptor channels, J. Physiol. (Lond.) 277:153–176.

    CAS  Google Scholar 

  • Neher, E., and Stevens, C. F., 1977, Conductance fluctuations and ionic pores in membranes, Annu. Rev. Biophys. Bioengr. 6:345–381.

    Article  CAS  Google Scholar 

  • Neher, E., Sakmann, B., and Steinbach, J. H., 1978, The extracellular patch clamp: A method for resolving currents through individual open channels in biological membranes, Pflügers Arch. 375:219–228.

    Article  PubMed  CAS  Google Scholar 

  • Nelson, D. J., and Sachs, F., 1979, Single ionic channels observed in tissue cultured muscle, Nature 282:861–863.

    Article  PubMed  CAS  Google Scholar 

  • Patlak, J., Gration, K. A. F., and Usherwood, P. N. R., 1979, Single glutamate-activated channels in locust muscle, Nature 278:643–645.

    Article  PubMed  CAS  Google Scholar 

  • Poussart, D. J. M., 1969, Nerve membrane current noise: Direct measurements under voltage clamp, Proc. Natl. Acad. Sci. USA 64:95–99.

    Article  PubMed  CAS  Google Scholar 

  • Rice, S. O., 1954, Mathematical analysis of noise, in: Selected Papers on Noise and Stochastic Processes (N. Wax, ed.), pp. 133–294, Dover Publications, New York.

    Google Scholar 

  • Ruff, R. L., 1976, Local anesthetic alteration of miniature endplate currents and endplate current fluctuations, Biophys. J. 16:433–439.

    Article  PubMed  CAS  Google Scholar 

  • Sachs, F., and Lecar, H., 1973, Acetylcholine noise in tissue culture muscle cells, Nature [New Biol.] 246:214–216.

    CAS  Google Scholar 

  • Sachs, F., and Lecar, H., 1977, Acetylcholine-induced current fluctuations in tissue-cultured muscle cells under voltage clamp, Biophys. J. 17:129–143.

    Article  PubMed  CAS  Google Scholar 

  • Sakmann, B., 1975, Noise analysis of acetylcholine-induced currents in normal and denervated rat muscle fibre, Pflügers Arch. 359:R89.

    Google Scholar 

  • Sakmann, B., and Boheim, G., 1979, Alamethicin-induced single channel conductance fluctuations in biological membranes, Nature 282:336–339.

    Article  PubMed  CAS  Google Scholar 

  • Schuetze, S. M., Frank, E. F., and Fischbach, G. D., 1978, Channel open time and metabolic stability of synaptic and extrasynaptic acetylcholine receptors on cultured myotubes, Proc. Natl. Acad. Sci. USA 75:520–523.

    Article  PubMed  CAS  Google Scholar 

  • Schwartz, E. A., 1977, Voltage noise observed in rods of the turtle retina, J. Physiol. (Lond.) 272:217–246.

    CAS  Google Scholar 

  • Siebenga, E., Meyer, A., and Verveen, A. A., 1973, Membrane shot noise in electrically depolarized nodes of Ranvier, Pflügers Arch. 341:87–96.

    Article  PubMed  CAS  Google Scholar 

  • Sigworth, F. J., 1977, Sodium channels in nerve apparently have two conductance states, Nature 270:215–267.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Stephens, C. L., Jackson, M. B., and Lecar, H., 1980, Single C channel currents in living cells, J. Immunol. 124:1541.

    Google Scholar 

  • Stevens, C. F., 1976, A comment on Martin’s relation, Biophys. J. 16:891–895.

    Article  PubMed  CAS  Google Scholar 

  • Ten Hoopen, M., and Verveen, A. A., 1962, Nerve-model experiments on fluctuation in excitability, Proc. Int. Conf. Cybernetics in Medicine (N. Wiener and J. P. Schade, eds.), pp. 8–21, Elsevier, Amsterdam.

    Google Scholar 

  • Van Helden, D., Hamill, O. P., and Gage, P. W., 1977, Permeant cations alter endplate channel characteristics, Nature 269:711–713.

    Article  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  • Verveen, A. A., and DeFelice, L. J., 1974, Membrane noise, Prog. Biophys. Mol. Biol. 28:189–265.

    Article  PubMed  CAS  Google Scholar 

  • Verveen, A. A., and Derksen, H. E., 1968, Fluctuation phenomena in nerve membrane, Proc. IEEE 56:906–916.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Verveen, A. A., and Derksen, H. E., 1969, Amplitude distribution of axon membrane noise voltage, Acta Physiol. Pharmacol. Neerl. 15:353–379.

    PubMed  CAS  Google Scholar 

  • Verveen, A. A., Derksen, H. E., and Schick, K. L., 1967, Voltage fluctuations of neural membrane, Nature 216:588–589.

    Article  PubMed  CAS  Google Scholar 

  • Wong, F., 1978, Nature of the light-induced conductance changes in neutral photoreceptors of Limulus, Nature 276:76–78.

    Article  PubMed  CAS  Google Scholar 

Download references

Author information

Authors and Affiliations

  1. Laboratory of Biophysics, Intramural Research Program, National Institute of Neurological and Communicative Disorders and Stroke, National Institutes of Health, Bethesda, Maryland, 20205, USA

    Harold Lecar

  2. Department of Pharmacology and Therapeutics, State University of New York, Buffalo, New York, 14214, USA

    Frederick Sachs

Authors
  1. Harold Lecar
    View author publications

    You can also search for this author in PubMed Google Scholar

  2. Frederick Sachs
    View author publications

    You can also search for this author in PubMed Google Scholar

Editor information

Editors and Affiliations

  1. Laboratory of Developmental Neurobiology, National Institute of Child Health and Human Development, National Institutes of Health, Bethesda, Maryland, 20205, USA

    Phillip G. Nelson

  2. Department of Physiology, Duke University Medical Center, Durham, North Carolina, 27710, USA

    Melvyn Lieberman

Rights and permissions

Reprints and permissions

Copyright information

© 1981 Plenum Press, New York

About this chapter

Cite this chapter

Lecar, H., Sachs, F. (1981). Membrane Noise Analysis. In: Nelson, P.G., Lieberman, M. (eds) Excitable Cells in Tissue Culture. Springer, Boston, MA. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-1-4684-3803-1_5

Download citation

  • DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/978-1-4684-3803-1_5

  • Publisher Name: Springer, Boston, MA

  • Print ISBN: 978-1-4684-3805-5

  • Online ISBN: 978-1-4684-3803-1

  • eBook Packages: Springer Book Archive

Publish with us

Policies and ethics

Search

Navigation