Size conservation emerges spontaneously in biomolecular condensates formed by scaffolds and surfactant clients.

ABSTRACT: Biomolecular condensates are liquid-like membraneless compartments that contribute to the spatiotemporal organization of proteins, RNA, and other biomolecules inside cells. Some membraneless compartments, such as nucleoli, are dispersed as different condensates that do not grow beyond a certain size, or do not present coalescence over time. In this work, using a minimal protein model, we show that phase separation of binary mixtures of scaffolds and low-valency clients that can act as surfactants-i.e., that significantly reduce the droplet surface tension-can yield either a single drop or multiple droplets that conserve their sizes on long timescales (herein 'multidroplet size-conserved' scenario'), depending on the scaffold to client ratio. Our simulations demonstrate that protein connect

SUBMITTER: Sanchez-Burgos I 

PROVIDER: S-EPMC8316449 | biostudies-literature | 2021 Jul

REPOSITORIES: biostudies-literature