SYSTEM FOR MEASURING TENSION OF SINGLE CELL

摘要

PROBLEM TO BE SOLVED: To solve such problems that a proper means for fixing a single cardiac muscle cell to a rod for tension measurement is not available because the single cardiac muscle cell constituting the muscle of the heart is extremely fine such as about 100μm and that a proper system for measuring the function of the single cardiac muscle cell does not exist. SOLUTION: Both ends of the single cardiac muscle cell 10 are sucked by a suction force due to an electrostatic force so as to be fixed to a first carbon microrod 12 whose one end containing glasslike carbon and crystalline carbon is fixed and to a second carbon microrod 13 whose one end composed of the same material is fixed to a piezoelement 14 so as to be movable. The carbon microrod 13 is projected on a four-split CCD 22, and an image which is displaced by the tension of the cardiac muscle cell is detected. Its output signal is used as the control signal of the piezoelement 14 via a differential amplifier 24 and a feedback amplifier 15, the second carbon microrod is controlled to reach a prescribed position, and the tension of the cardiac muscle cell 10 is measured on the basis of the signal at this time.