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PROTEIN AGGREGATION

Membranes regulate biomolecular condensates

Nature Cell Biology volume 24, pages 404–405 (2022)Cite this article

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Biomolecular condensation has emerged as a fundamental mechanism for cellular organization, but less is known about the regulation of condensate subcellular location and size. A new study reports that membrane tethering of protein and RNA directly influences the assembly, size and material properties of ribonucleic condensates.

Biomolecular condensates are cellular compartments that concentrate a specific group of molecules without a surrounding membrane. Condensate formation has emerged as a fundamental mechanism for cellular organization and compartmentalization. Many condensates form through liquid–liquid phase separation driven by multivalent molecular interactions. Phase separation is a thermodynamic process; above a threshold concentration, the solution demixes into a dense and dilute phase. In liquid–liquid phase separation, the coexisting phases have liquid-like material properties, resulting in the formation of condensates that behave as liquid droplets. Over the past decade, biochemical, cellular and theoretical studies have provided a detailed understanding of how condensates form. However, how cells control the subcellular location of condensates or limit the size of condensates are unknown. In this issue of Nature Cell Biology, Snead et al. find that membranes can directly influence condensate assembly and size1.

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Fig. 1: Membrane localization controls the nucleation and size of condensates.

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  1. Department of Biology, Massachusetts Institute of Technology, Cambridge, MA, USA

    Lindsay B. Case

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Case, L.B. Membranes regulate biomolecular condensates. Nat Cell Biol 24, 404–405 (2022). https://doi.org/10.1038/s41556-022-00892-1

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