Multichannel Systems MEA Manual - Manual (Page 37)

MEA Manual
37
5.3 MEA Storage
To maintain a hydrophilic surface after hydrophilization, it is recommended to store the MEAs filled
with water until use. Dry MEAs will get hydrophobic again after some time.
Store MEAs filled with sterile distilled water at 4 °C in the dark (that is, in the fridge, to prevent
microbiological contaminations) to maintain a hydrophilic surface.
5.4 MEA Coating
Coating of MEAs with various materials is used for improving the attachment and growth of cell cultures
or cultured slices. Coating is generally not required for recordings from acute slices.
Coating of MEAs has the same purpose than coating of other culture dishes. Therefore, you can generally
use the same standard protocols that you have established for coating culture dishes for your cell cultures,
provided that the involved chemicals are not aggressive and damage the electrodes (see recommendations
for the various MEA types).
In the following, some standard coating procedures are shortly described. You should try out which coating
procedure proves best for your application. The listed materials are only recommendations; you may use
any equivalent equipment. Most coatings are stable for several uses of the MEA and do not have to be
removed after use (except nitrocellulose).
Please note that the materials and procedures described in the following are only a summary of published
information from other sources (see references) or from personal communications with MEA users, and has
the intention of helping users finding the appropriate information for setting up their experiments. Multi
Channel Systems MCS GmbH has not tested or verified this information, and therefore cannot guarantee
that the information is correct. Please refer to the referenced literature for planning and executing any
experiments.
5.4.1 Coating with Nitrocellulose
Coating with nitrocellulose is a fast procedure that works with several cell types and tissues and that
is also successful with slightly hydrophobic MEAs. This method has the advantage that the cells stick well
to the surface. Nitrocellulose does not form a uniform layer on the MEA. The coating leaves patches of
nitrocellulose, which serve as a glue for the tissue, on the MEA surface. The tissue is not likely to get
detached even under severe mechanical disturbance (by perfusion, for example). MEAs coated with
nitrocellulose can be stored for a few days. Nitrocellulose coating has to be removed after use.
Main advantages of this method are that nitrocellulose is cheap, coating is fast and easy,
and it is also easily removed after use.
Note: Nitrocellulose solutions cannot be stored for a longer period of time. The solution forms a visible
gelatinous precipitate after extended storage of at least half a year and will not produce satisfactory
adhesive coatings anymore. Prepare a fresh solution if there are visible precipitates.
Materials
 Protran or other standard nitrocellulose membrane (Whatman, PerkinElmer)
 100 % Methanol (Carl Roth GmbH + Co. KG, UN-No. 1230)