High-throughput electrophysiology reveals subtype specific temperature dependence of sodium channel activation and inactivation

Abstract

Voltage-gated sodium channels (Navs) play an essential role in the electrical signaling of cells, especially in the action potential initiation and propagation. Most electrophysiological experiments performed to study the gating properties of Navs were conducted at room temperature due to technical challenges. It is known that channel gating is temperature sensitive, but data about the effect on different ion-channel subtypes is rare. Pain syndromes such as small fiber neuropathy (SFN), inherited erythromelalgia (IEM) and paroxysmal extreme pain disorder (PEPD) can be linked to gain-of-function mutations in voltage-gated sodium channels, especially in Nav1.7.