Introduction to Ion Channel Research

Since the pioneering discoveries of Hodgkin, Huxley, and Katz, it has been clear that specific ion conductance pathways underlie electrical activity. Over the ensuing 50 years, there has been ever increasing, and occasionally explosive, changes in the scope of efforts to understand ion channel behavior.

The introduction of patch clamp technology by Erwin Neher and Bert Sakmann about 20 years ago led to the realization of the great variety of novel ion channel species, and the subsequent revolution in cloning has revealed an even greater diversity of the underlying molecular entities.

Today, advances in the study of ion channel structure and function continue at a high pace, from angstrom resolution imaging of crystallized channels to their genetic manipulations in animals. In this regard, the field is a balanced one that inquires not only what ion channel entities are there, or how they operate, but also where are these molecular electronic switches?

However, this balance is not particularly well presented to the general scientific audience or to specialists in the field. There are plenty of wonderful and useful books and monographs, as well as conferences and meetings on virtually every aspect of ion channel structure and function. However, we are unaware that the channel localization theme has been considered in a unified forum.