Abstract
Since the 1970s fluorescence imaging has become a leading tool in the discovery of mechanisms of cardiac function and arrhythmias. Gradual improvements in fluorescent probes and multi-camera technology have increased the power of optical mapping and made a major impact on the field of cardiac electrophysiology. Tandem-lens optical mapping systems facilitated simultaneous recording of multiple parameters characterizing cardiac function. However, high cost and technological complexity restricted its proliferation to the wider biological community. We present here, an open-source solution for multiple-camera tandem-lens optical systems for multiparametric mapping of transmembrane potential, intracellular calcium dynamics and other parameters in intact mouse hearts and in rat heart slices. This 3D-printable hardware and Matlab-based RHYTHM 1.2 analysis software are distributed under an MIT open-source license. Rapid prototyping permits the development of inexpensive, customized systems with broad functionality, allowing wider application of this technology outside biomedical engineering laboratories.
Highlights
Electrophysiology of excitable cells, such as cardiac myocytes and neurons, has been studied for more than a century using various electrode-based techniques to assess extracellular and transmembrane potentials, ionic currents and currents between two electrically coupled cells
We demonstrate the use of our 3D-printed dual-camera tandem lens system by optically mapping voltage and calcium signals from intact mouse hearts and rat cardiac tissue slices
Several advancements in technology have improved optocardiography methodology and its scope over the last few decades, the cost associated with an optical mapping system is still a significant financial burden to many groups[20]
Summary
Electrophysiology of excitable cells, such as cardiac myocytes and neurons, has been studied for more than a century using various electrode-based techniques to assess extracellular and transmembrane potentials, ionic currents and currents between two electrically coupled cells. The emitted light is collected by a lens, split into separate paths using a dichroic mirror, filtered, and directed to individual photodetectors (Fig. 1c) This system can be further expanded to record multiple parameters using a tandem lens approach (Fig. 1d). The majority of the price is due to electronic equipment, including illumination sources and photodetectors[20] Another cost to consider in optical mapping systems is the continued expense of conducting experiments that arise from the need for expensive dyes and chemicals, such as electromechanical uncouplers. We demonstrate the use of our 3D-printed dual-camera tandem lens system by optically mapping voltage and calcium signals from intact mouse hearts and rat cardiac tissue slices
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