Microfluidics for multiscale studies of biomolecular condensates

Abstract

Membraneless organelles formed through condensation of biomolecules in living cells have become the focus of sustained efforts to elucidate their mechanisms of formation and function. These condensates perform a range of vital functions in cells and are closely connected to key processes in functional and aberrant biology. Since these systems occupy a size scale intermediate between single proteins and conventional protein complexes on the one hand, and cellular length scales on the other hand, they have proved challenging to probe using conventional approaches from either protein science or cell biology. Additionally, condensate can form, solidify and perform functions on various time-scales. From a physical point of view, biomolecular condensates are colloidal soft matter systems, and microfluidic approaches, which originated in soft condensed matter research, have successfully been used to study biomolecular condensates. This review explores how microfluidics have aided condensate research into the thermodynamics, kinetics and other properties of condensates, by offering high-throughput and novel experimental setups.