Abstract
Phase transitions in cells provide a wonderful arena for investigation by students of physics, chemistry, and biology to come together to apply their foundational knowledge. In this article, we provide an intuitive approach to the basic physical principles of phase separation. We then highlight several examples that illustrate how the cell, the fundamental unit of life, makes use of phase separation to organise its contents.
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Kripa Gowrishankar is an assistant professor of physics at Azim Premji University.
Her research work is interdisciplinary, and she uses tools from physics to understand biological processes. At APU she develops classroom demonstrations as well as projects that engage students as active learners and help build their intuition of physical phenomena.
Sravanti Uppaluri teaches biology at Azim Premji University. She studies developmental biology using Hydra and C.elegans and works with undergraduate students to answer cell, size, and tissue organisation questions. She is part of the author team of www.iThinkbiology.in.
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Gowrishankar, K., Uppaluri, S. An Introduction to Phase Separation in Cell Biology. Reson 28, 229–245 (2023). https://doi.org/10.1007/s12045-023-1545-0
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DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/s12045-023-1545-0