Max Planck Institute of Colloids and Interfaces, Science Park Golm, 14476, Potsdam, Germany.
Department of Nutrition and Food Hygiene, Guangzhou Medical University, Guangzhou, 511436, China.
Nat Commun. 2023 May 22;14(1):2809. doi: 10.1038/s41467-023-37955-2.
Cells compartmentalize parts of their interiors into liquid-like condensates, which can be reconstituted in vitro. Although these condensates interact with membrane-bound organelles, their potential for membrane remodeling and the underlying mechanisms of such interactions are not well-understood. Here, we demonstrate that interactions between protein condensates - including hollow ones, and membranes can lead to remarkable morphological transformations and provide a theoretical framework to describe them. Modulation of solution salinity or membrane composition drives the condensate-membrane system through two wetting transitions, from dewetting, through a broad regime of partial wetting, to complete wetting. When sufficient membrane area is available, fingering or ruffling of the condensate-membrane interface is observed, an intriguing phenomenon producing intricately curved structures. The observed morphologies are governed by the interplay of adhesion, membrane elasticity, and interfacial tension. Our results highlight the relevance of wetting in cell biology, and pave the way for the design of synthetic membrane-droplet based biomaterials and compartments with tunable properties.
细胞将其内部的部分物质分隔成类似液体的凝聚物，可以在体外重新构成。尽管这些凝聚物与膜结合的细胞器相互作用，但它们对膜重塑的潜力以及这种相互作用的潜在机制还不是很清楚。在这里，我们证明了蛋白质凝聚物 - 包括中空的凝聚物 - 与膜之间的相互作用可以导致显著的形态转变，并提供了一个描述它们的理论框架。通过调节溶液盐度或膜组成，使凝聚物-膜系统通过两个润湿转变，从去湿，通过一个广泛的部分润湿区域，到完全润湿。当有足够的膜面积时，会观察到凝聚物-膜界面的指状或褶皱，这是一种产生复杂弯曲结构的有趣现象。观察到的形态由粘附、膜弹性和界面张力的相互作用控制。我们的结果强调了润湿在细胞生物学中的相关性，并为设计具有可调性质的基于合成膜-液滴的生物材料和隔间铺平了道路。
