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The Role of Liquid–Liquid Phase Separation in the Compartmentalization of Cell Nucleus and Spatial Genome Organization

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Abstract

Functional compartmentalization of the cell nucleus plays an important role in the regulation of genome activity by providing accumulation of enzymes and auxiliary factors in the reaction centers, such as transcription factories, Cajal bodies, speckles, etc. The mechanisms behind the nucleus functional compartmentalization are still poorly understood. There are reasons to believe that the key role in the nucleus compartmentalization belongs to the process of liquid–liquid phase separation. In this brief review, we analyze results of experimental studies demonstrating that liquid–liquid phase separation not only governs functional compartmentalization of the cell nucleus but also contributes to the formation of the 3D genomic architecture.

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Abbreviations

IC:

interchromatin compartment

IDR:

intrinsically disordered region

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Funding

This work was financially supported by the Russian Science Foundation (project No. 18-14-00011).

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  1. Institute of Gene Biology, Russian Academy of Sciences, 119334, Moscow, Russia

    S. V. Razin & A. A. Gavrilov

  2. Lomonosov Moscow State University, Faculty of Biology, 119991, Moscow, Russia

    S. V. Razin

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Correspondence to S. V. Razin.

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Razin, S., Gavrilov, A. The Role of Liquid–Liquid Phase Separation in the Compartmentalization of Cell Nucleus and Spatial Genome Organization. Biochemistry Moscow 85, 643–650 (2020). https://doi.org/10.1134/S0006297920060012

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