ArticlePRX life2024
Molecular Drivers of Aging in Biomolecular Condensates: Desolvation, Rigidification, and Sticker Lifetimes.
Article in PRX life, 2024. The graph could read no effect estimate from its abstract, so it casts no vote on the map. Cited by 28 papers.
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Who cites it
28 citing papers in PubMed.
- Article
- Progress toward linking single-molecule behavior and condensate material properties.Current opinion in structural biology · 2026Review
- Mixing chromatin fibers with different nucleosome repeat lengths changes dynamics of chromatin phase separation.The Journal of biological chemistry · 2026Article
- A Unifying Thermodynamic Model for Phase Separation and Aging of Biopolymers.Advanced science (Weinheim, Baden-Wurttemberg, Germany) · 2026Article
- Article
- Computational rheometry for modeling viscoelasticity and mechanical responses of biomolecular condensates.Biophysical journal · 2026Article
- Article
- Backbone rigidity encodes universal viscoelastic signatures in biomolecular condensates.Biophysical journal · 2026Article
- A molecular grammar for programmable multiphase protein-RNA vesicles.bioRxiv : the preprint server for biology · 2026Article
- Decoupling phase separation and fibrillization preserves activity of biomolecular condensates.Nature communications · 2026Article
- Molecular origins of viscoelasticity in biomolecular condensates.The Journal of chemical physics · 2026Article
- Sticky interactions govern sequence-dependent dynamics in biomolecular condensates.Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences of the United States of America · 2026Article
- Driving forces of RNA condensation revealed through coarse-grained modeling with explicit MgProceedings of the National Academy of Sciences of the United States of America · 2025Article
- Biomolecular condensate viscoelasticity is dictated by the interplay between single-molecule shape memory and mesh reconfigurability.bioRxiv : the preprint server for biology · 2025Article
- A phase transition modulates the protective function of a tardigrade disordered protein during desiccation.Protein science : a publication of the Protein Society · 2025Article
- Computational rheometry of viscoelastic networks: From random graphs to biomolecular condensates.bioRxiv : the preprint server for biology · 2025Article
- Current practices in the study of biomolecular condensates: a community comment.Nature communications · 2025Article
- Time-dependent catalytic activity in aging condensates.Nature communications · 2025Article
- Article
- Material properties of biomolecular condensates emerge from nanoscale dynamics.Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences of the United States of America · 2025Article
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Authors and funding
2 authors.
Funding
Abstract
Biomolecular condensates are dynamic intracellular entities defined by their sequence- and composition-encoded material properties. During aging, these properties can change dramatically, potentially leading to pathological solidlike states, the mechanisms of which remain poorly understood. Recent experiments reveal that the aging of condensates involves a complex interplay of solvent depletion, strengthening of sticker links, and the formation of rigid structural segments such as beta fibrils. In this study, we use various coarse-grained models to investigate how solvent expulsion, biopolymer chain rigidity, and the lifetimes of sticker contacts influence the viscoelastic properties and aging dynamics of condensates. We find that the rigidity of the biopolymer backbone is essential for replicating the predominant elastic behavior observed in experiments. In contrast, models using fully flexible chains-an assumption common in simulations of intrinsically disordered proteins-fail to exhibit a dominant elastic regime. We also demonstrate that altering the solvent content within condensates affects the crossover between storage and loss moduli. This suggests that desolvation plays a significant role in condensate aging by promoting the transition from a viscous to an elastic state. Furthermore, the lifetime of sticker pairs profoundly influences the mature state of the condensates; short-lived stickers lead to a Maxwell fluid behavior, while longer-lived, irreversibly cross-linked stickers result in solidlike properties, consistent with the Kelvin-Voigt model. Finally, by incorporating the chain rigidification, desolvation, and sticker pair formation into a nonequilibrium dynamic aging simulation, we show the molecular mechanism of forming solid shells around the condensate surfaces observed in a recent experimental report.
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Read under generation 80e0d062 · epoch 390. Bibliography from PubMed, PubMed Central and OpenAlex; grants from NIH RePORTER; trial links from ClinicalTrials.gov; estimates, votes and beliefs from the OpenQuestion graph.