ABSTRACT
Since its inception in 1982, electroporation has possibly become the most widespread and versatile technique used to introduce nucleic acids into living cells. Basically, cells are subjected to short electric pulses, delivered through capacitor discharge (exponential decay) or fast switching (square wave or pulse), in the presence of deoxyribonucleic acid (DNA) or ribonucleic acid (RNA). So far, it has generally been assumed that E (electric field strength between the elec-trodes) and RC (also designated τ, the time taken by a capacitor to release 63% of its charge), or pulse time, in the case of a square wave, are the most critical parameters in electroporation success: “E and τ are the most important electrical variables affecting electroporation” (1). We wish to replace this statement with a new paradigm that unifies all electroporation parameters: “Once the cell membrane breakdown voltage has been reached, the most important parameter affecting electroporation is energy dissipation in the system.”
