RT Journal Article
SR Electronic
T1 mRNA structure determines specificity of a polyQ-driven phase separation
JF bioRxiv
FD Cold Spring Harbor Laboratory
SP 233817
DO 10.1101/233817
A1 Erin M. Langdon
A1 Peggy Billingsly
A1 Amirhossein Ghanbari Niaki
A1 Grace McLaughlin
A1 Chase Weidmann
A1 Therese Gerbich
A1 Christina M. Termini
A1 Kevin M. Weeks
A1 Sua Myong
A1 Amy S. Gladfelter
YR 2017
UL http://biorxiv.org/content/early/2017/12/13/233817.abstract
AB Many subcellular structures assemble via liquid-liquid phase separation (LLPS) to form compartments without membranes. Though it has been shown that RNA is a central driver and modulator of LLPS, it is not yet known how these liquid droplets establish and maintain individual identities. Here we examine how mRNAs are recruited to or excluded from liquid compartments based on their sequence and ability to self-associate. We find that the specific secondary structure of a cyclin mRNA is required for it to assemble into distinct droplets and be excluded from other droplets containing functionally-unrelated mRNAs. This molecular mechanism explains how sequence-encoded shape information in RNA promotes the coexistence of the diverse array of RNA-rich liquid compartments found in a single cell.One Sentence Summary Identity in cellular, phase-separated compartments emerges from RNA-RNA complexes encoded by mRNA secondary structures.