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Intracellular wetting mediates contacts between liquid compartments and membrane-bound organelles

Kusumaatmaja, Halim; May, Alexander I.; Knorr, Roland L.

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Authors

Alexander I. May

Roland L. Knorr



Abstract

Protein-rich droplets, such as stress granules, P-bodies, and the nucleolus, perform diverse and specialized cellular functions. Recent evidence has shown the droplets, which are also known as biomolecular condensates or membrane-less compartments, form by phase separation. Many droplets also contact membrane-bound organelles, thereby functioning in development, intracellular degradation, and organization. These underappreciated interactions have major implications for our fundamental understanding of cells. Starting with a brief introduction to wetting phenomena, we summarize recent progress in the emerging field of droplet–membrane contact. We describe the physical mechanism of droplet–membrane interactions, discuss how these interactions remodel droplets and membranes, and introduce "membrane scaffolding" by liquids as a novel reshaping mechanism, thereby demonstrating that droplet–membrane interactions are elastic wetting phenomena. “Membrane-less” and “membrane-bound” condensates likely represent distinct wetting states that together link phase separation with mechanosensitivity and explain key structures observed during embryogenesis, during autophagy, and at synapses. We therefore contend that droplet wetting on membranes provides a robust and intricate means of intracellular organization.

Citation

Kusumaatmaja, H., May, A. I., & Knorr, R. L. (2021). Intracellular wetting mediates contacts between liquid compartments and membrane-bound organelles. Journal of Cell Biology, 220(10), Article e202103175. https://doi.org/10.1083/jcb.202103175

Journal Article Type Article
Acceptance Date Aug 5, 2021
Online Publication Date Aug 24, 2021
Publication Date Oct 4, 2021
Deposit Date Oct 18, 2021
Publicly Available Date Mar 29, 2024
Journal Journal of Cell Biology
Print ISSN 0021-9525
Electronic ISSN 1540-8140
Publisher Rockefeller University Press
Peer Reviewed Peer Reviewed
Volume 220
Issue 10
Article Number e202103175
DOI https://doi.org/10.1083/jcb.202103175

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Copyright Statement
© 2021 Kusumaatmaja et al. This article is distributed under the terms of an Attribution–Noncommercial–Share Alike–No Mirror Sites license for the first six months after
the publication date (see http://www.rupress.org/terms/). After six months it is available under a Creative Commons License (Attribution–Noncommercial–Share Alike 4.0
International license, as described at https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nc-sa/4.0/).





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