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Condensed Matter > Soft Condensed Matter
Title: Predicting the morphology of multiphase biomolecular condensates from protein interaction networks
(Submitted on 5 Dec 2023 (v1), last revised 29 Mar 2024 (this version, v2))
Abstract: Phase-separated biomolecular condensates containing proteins and RNAs can assemble into higher-order structures by forming thermodynamically stable interfaces between immiscible phases. Using a minimal model of a protein/RNA interaction network, we demonstrate how a "shared" protein species that partitions into both phases of a multiphase condensate can function as a tunable surfactant that modulates the interfacial properties. We use Monte Carlo simulations and free-energy calculations to identify conditions under which a low concentration of this shared species is sufficient to trigger a wetting transition. We also describe a numerical approach based on classical density functional theory to predict concentration profiles and surface tensions directly from the model protein/RNA interaction network. Finally, we show that the wetting phase diagrams that emerge from our calculations can be understood in terms of a simple model of selective adsorption to a fluctuating interface. Our work shows how a low-concentration protein species might function as a biological switch for regulating multiphase condensate morphologies.
Submission history
From: William Jacobs [view email][v1] Tue, 5 Dec 2023 14:49:24 GMT (1929kb,D)
[v2] Fri, 29 Mar 2024 20:55:57 GMT (1941kb,D)
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