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BP: Fachverband Biologische Physik

BP 5: Statistical Physics of Biological Systems II (with DY)

BP 5.9: Vortrag

Montag, 26. März 2012, 17:00–17:15, H 1058

Spatial organization of the cell cytoplasm: Amplifying protein concentration gradient by phase separation — •Chiu Fan Lee¹, Clifford P. Brangwynne², Jöbin Gharakhani¹, Zdeněk Petrášek³, Petra Schwille³, Anthony A. Hyman⁴, and Frank Jülicher¹ — ¹Max Planck Institute for the Physics of Complex Systems, Dresden, Germany — ²Department of Chemical and Biological Engineering, Princeton University, USA — ³Biotechnologisches Zentrum, Dresden, Germany — ⁴Max Planck Institute of Molecular Cell Biology and Genetics, Dresden, Germany

Pattern formation in the cell cytoplasm plays an important role in a number of biological processes. During cell division, the cell cytoplasm undergoes dramatic spatial reorganization. In the case of asymmetric cell division, cytoplasmic components are segregated spatially. An intriguing example is the spatial organization of the cytoplasm during asymmetric cell division in the C. elegans embryo, which involves the generation of a concentration gradient of the protein Mex-5 that in turn localizes P granules to the posterior side. P granules are liquid drops consisting of RNA and proteins that are important for germline specification. Combining theory and quantitative experiments, we propose a simple scenario that describes how the Mex-5 concentration gradient controls the spatial profile of P granule formation and the localization of P-granules to the posterior of the cell. Furthermore, we demonstrate that with the help of phase separation based on the Flory-Huggins formalism, the P granule concentration gradient can be drastically amplified in comparison to the Mex-5 concentration gradient.