Biomolecular condensate phase diagrams with a combinatorial microdroplet platform

Research output: Contribution to journalResearch articleContributedpeer-review

Contributors

  • William E. Arter - , University of Cambridge (Author)
  • Runzhang Qi - , University of Cambridge (Author)
  • Nadia A. Erkamp - , University of Cambridge (Author)
  • Georg Krainer - , University of Cambridge (Author)
  • Kieran Didi - , University of Cambridge (Author)
  • Timothy J. Welsh - , University of Cambridge (Author)
  • Julia Acker - , University of Cambridge (Author)
  • Jonathan Nixon-Abell - , University of Cambridge (Author)
  • Seema Qamar - , University of Cambridge (Author)
  • Jordina Guillén-Boixet - , Chair of Cellular Biochemistry (Author)
  • Titus M. Franzmann - , Chair of Cellular Biochemistry (Author)
  • David Kuster - , Max Planck Institute of Molecular Cell Biology and Genetics (Author)
  • Anthony A. Hyman - , Max Planck Institute of Molecular Cell Biology and Genetics (Author)
  • Alexander Borodavka - , University of Cambridge (Author)
  • Peter St George-Hyslop - , University of Cambridge, University of Toronto, Columbia University (Author)
  • Simon Alberti - , Chair of Cellular Biochemistry (Author)
  • Tuomas P.J. Knowles - , University of Cambridge (Author)

Abstract

The assembly of biomolecules into condensates is a fundamental process underlying the organisation of the intracellular space and the regulation of many cellular functions. Mapping and characterising phase behaviour of biomolecules is essential to understand the mechanisms of condensate assembly, and to develop therapeutic strategies targeting biomolecular condensate systems. A central concept for characterising phase-separating systems is the phase diagram. Phase diagrams are typically built from numerous individual measurements sampling different parts of the parameter space. However, even when performed in microwell plate format, this process is slow, low throughput and requires significant sample consumption. To address this challenge, we present here a combinatorial droplet microfluidic platform, termed PhaseScan, for rapid and high-resolution acquisition of multidimensional biomolecular phase diagrams. Using this platform, we characterise the phase behaviour of a wide range of systems under a variety of conditions and demonstrate that this approach allows the quantitative characterisation of the effect of small molecules on biomolecular phase transitions.

Details

Original languageEnglish
Article number7845
JournalNature communications
Volume13
Issue number1
Publication statusPublished - 21 Dec 2022
Peer-reviewedYes

External IDs

PubMed 36543777
ORCID /0000-0003-4017-6505/work/147143313