Membraneless organelles and liquid-liquid phase separation â methods for their characterisation

Authors

  • Aneta Tarczewska Department of Biochemistry, Molecular Biology and Biotechnology, Faculty of Chemistry, Wrocław University of Science and Technology, Wrocław
  • Krzysztof Wycisk Department of Biochemistry, Molecular Biology and Biotechnology, Faculty of Chemistry, Wrocław University of Science and Technology, Wrocław
  • Nikola Sozańska Department of Biochemistry, Molecular Biology and Biotechnology, Faculty of Chemistry, Wrocław University of Science and Technology, Wrocław
  • Andrzej Ożyhar Department of Biochemistry, Molecular Biology and Biotechnology, Faculty of Chemistry, Wrocław University of Science and Technology, Wrocław

DOI:

https://doi.org/10.18388/pb.2020_330

Abstract

Membraneless organelles (MLOs) are a large group of intracellular compartments formed during various stages of a cell life. They are important subcellular structures which enable a cell performance of vital physiological processes including stress response. MLOs can be found in cytoplasm and organelles that are sealed by lipidic membrane, mainly in nucleus. They are formed by the thermodynamically driven liquid-liquid phase separation (LLPS). MLOs contain proteins possessing intrinsically disordered regions (IDRs) which together with RNA spontaneously phase separate from the surrounding milieu. This paper presents information on the biophysical basses of the formation and functionality of MLOs. It also discusses a range of experimental techniques that can be applied in biochemical and biological studies of these sub-cellular structures.

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Published

2020-06-27

Issue

Vol. 66 No. 2 (2020)

Section

Articles

License

Copyright (c) 2020 Advances in Biochemistry

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