Chauhan Gaurav, Wilkinson Edward G, Yuan Yaning, Cohen Samuel R, Onishi Masayuki, Pappu Rohit V, Strader Lucia C
Department of Biomedical Engineering and Center for Biomolecular Condensates, James McKelvey School of Engineering, Washington University in St. Louis, St. Louis, MO 63130, USA.
Department of Biology, Duke University, Durham, NC 27708, USA.
Sci Adv. 2025 May 23;11(21):eadv7875. doi: 10.1126/sciadv.adv7875.
Multiple factors drive biomolecular condensate formation. In plants, condensation of the transcription factors AUXIN RESPONSE FACTOR 7 (ARF7) and ARF19 attenuates response to the plant hormone auxin. Here, we report that actin-mediated movement of cytoplasmic ARF condensates enhances condensation. Coarse-grained molecular simulations of active polymers reveal that applied forces drive the associations of macromolecules to enhance phase separation while giving rise to dense phases that preferentially accumulate motile molecules. Our study highlights how molecular motility can drive phase separation, with implications for motile condensates while offering insights into cellular mechanisms that can regulate condensate dynamics.
多种因素驱动生物分子凝聚物的形成。在植物中,转录因子生长素响应因子7(ARF7)和ARF19的凝聚会减弱对植物激素生长素的响应。在此,我们报告肌动蛋白介导的细胞质ARF凝聚物的移动会增强凝聚作用。活性聚合物的粗粒度分子模拟表明,施加的力会驱动大分子的缔合以增强相分离,同时产生优先积累运动性分子的致密相。我们的研究突出了分子运动性如何驱动相分离,这对运动性凝聚物具有重要意义,同时也为可调节凝聚物动态的细胞机制提供了见解。