Journal ArticleDOI
Germline P Granules Are Liquid Droplets That Localize by Controlled Dissolution/Condensation
Clifford P. Brangwynne,Christian R. Eckmann,David S. Courson,Agata Rybarska,Carsten Hoege,Jöbin Gharakhani,Jöbin Gharakhani,Frank Jülicher,Frank Jülicher,Anthony A. Hyman,Anthony A. Hyman +10 more
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TLDR
It is shown that P granules exhibit liquid-like behaviors, including fusion, dripping, and wetting, which is used to estimate their viscosity and surface tension, and reflects a classic phase transition, in which polarity proteins vary the condensation point across the cell.Abstract:
In sexually reproducing organisms, embryos specify germ cells, which ultimately generate sperm and eggs In Caenorhabditis elegans, the first germ cell is established when RNA and protein-rich P granules localize to the posterior of the one-cell embryo Localization of P granules and their physical nature remain poorly understood Here we show that P granules exhibit liquid-like behaviors, including fusion, dripping, and wetting, which we used to estimate their viscosity and surface tension As with other liquids, P granules rapidly dissolved and condensed Localization occurred by a biased increase in P granule condensation at the posterior This process reflects a classic phase transition, in which polarity proteins vary the condensation point across the cell Such phase transitions may represent a fundamental physicochemical mechanism for structuring the cytoplasmread more
Citations
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Biocatalyzed mineralization in an aqueous two-phase system: effect of background polymers and enzyme partitioning
TL;DR: The PEG/dextran ATPS reaction medium captured several key aspects of the biological environment including macromolecular crowding, localized reagent production via enzymatic activity, and reaction compartmentalization while not precluding the use of structure-directing additives such as proteins.
Journal ArticleDOI
Supramolecular Fuzziness of Intracellular Liquid Droplets: Liquid–Liquid Phase Transitions, Membrane-Less Organelles, and Intrinsic Disorder
TL;DR: The importance of the disorder-based supramolecular fuzziness for LLPTs and PMLO biogenesis is discussed and is considered to be crucial for successful execution of various biological functions.
Journal ArticleDOI
Effect of elasticity on phase separation in heterogeneous systems
Mrityunjay Kothari,Tal Cohen +1 more
TL;DR: In this article, the effect of elasticity on the phase separation of a binary mixture in soft, nonlinear solids has been analyzed using an energy-based approach that captures both the short-time quasi-equilibrium and the long-time evolution of phase separation in elastically homogeneous as well as heterogeneous materials.
Journal ArticleDOI
PML Nuclear Body Biogenesis, Carcinogenesis, and Targeted Therapy.
TL;DR: Recent breakthroughs in the PML field are reviewed ranging from a revised assembly mechanism to PML-driven genome organization and carcinogenesis and it is highlighted that oncogenic oligomerization might also represent a promising target in the treatment of leukemias and solid tumors.
Journal ArticleDOI
Giant Vesicles Exposed to Aqueous Two-Phase Systems: Membrane Wetting, Budding Processes, and Spontaneous Tubulation
Rumiana Dimova,Reinhard Lipowsky +1 more
TL;DR: Analyzing different aspects of the observed vesicle shapes, quantitative estimates of the spontaneous curvature which is found to vary, depending on the lipid composition, between 1/(125 nm) and 1/(600 nm), are obtained.
References
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Karen E. Kasza,Amy C. Rowat,Jiayu Liu,Thomas E. Angelini,Clifford P. Brangwynne,Gijsje H. Koenderink,David A. Weitz +6 more
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Pathway to Totipotency: Lessons from Germ Cells
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Journal ArticleDOI
PGL-1, a Predicted RNA-Binding Component of Germ Granules, Is Essential for Fertility in C. elegans
TL;DR: It is shown that a component of germ granules is essential for fertility in C. elegans and that its primary function is in germline proliferation.
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