ChanTest’s staff are experts in ion channels. Twenty percent are PhDs with years of experience measuring ion channel structure, function, correlations and pharmacology. Since its inception as an ion channel services company in 1998, ChanTest staff is dedicated to providing individual attention to serve each customer’s needs. Ion channel expertise includes molecular and cell biology, chemistry and biochemistry, electrophysiology, physiology, pharmacology, biophysics and clinical research.

• First to prove direct block of the hERG potassium channel as the cause of delayed repolarization and sudden cardiac death linked to non-cardiac drugs including Seldane (terfenadine), Propulsid (cisapride) and Nizoral (ketoconazole).
• Discovered block of hERG trafficking by drugs including arsenic trioxide and pentamidine that may cause sudden cardiac death
• Developed proprietary ion channel trafficking assays including HERG-Lite and Chan-Lite
• Discovered ion conduction pathways (pores) of voltage-gated and inwardly rectifying potassium channels
• Elucidated cardiac ion channelopathy phenotypes
• 300+ papers published in peer-reviewed journals (see publications page on this site)

ChanTest milestones:

• Pioneered the hERG patch clamp assay as a preclinical predictor of delayed repolarization, QT prolongation and torsades de pointes. This assay is now required for regulatory IND submissions.
• Introduced its patented HERG-Lite trafficking assay as a preclinical predictor of hERG risk
• Continued development of assays to quantify hERG, APD and QT risk
• Experienced in safety testing of all chemical classes of QT-prolonging drugs
• Tested 20,000+ compounds for more than 400 global customers
• Named “most trusted fee-for-service provider” for ion channel screening in the HTStec Ion Channel Trends Survey for 2006 and 2007
• Developing and validating the world’s most comprehensive library/catalog of ion channel-expressing cell lines (Ion Channel Catalog)
• Optimizing each cell line on each of the major automated electrophysiology platforms: PatchXpress, QPatch, IonWorks® Quattro™ and FLIPRTetra®
• Introducing Ion Channel Panels for primary and secondary pharmacodynamic profiling according to tissue (e.g., Cardiac Channel Panel), disease (e.g., Pain Channel Panel) or ion channel family (e.g., Nav1.x Channel Panel)
• Pioneering Channel Panels as FDA Critical Path tools for efficiently progressing drug candidates through development
• Inspected by more than 150 sponsors for GLP compliance
• Successful inspection by FDA for GLP compliance