Biomolecular Condensation: A New Phase in Cancer Research

Abstract

Multicellularity was a watershed development in evolution. However, it also meant that individual cells could escape regulatory mechanisms that restrict proliferation at a severe cost to the organism: cancer. From the standpoint of cellular organization, evolutionary complexity scales to organize different molecules within the intracellular milieu. The recent realization that many biomolecules can “phase-separate” into membraneless organelles, reorganizing cellular biochemistry in space and time, has led to an explosion of research activity in this area. In this review, we explore mechanistic connections between phase separation and cancer-associated processes and emerging examples of how these become deranged in malignancy.

Document Details

Document Type
Pub Defense Publication
Publication Date
Jul 19, 2022
Source ID
10.1158/2159-8290.cd-21-1605

Entities

People

  • Anupam K. Chakravarty
  • Brandon S Dunn
  • Daniel F Jarosz
  • Daniel McGrail
  • David J. H. Shih
  • Gordon B. Mills
  • Kara M. Cirillo
  • Nidhi Sahni
  • Song Yi
  • Sueda Cetinkaya
  • Sueda H. Cetinkaya
  • Thomas M. Lozanoski

Organizations

  • Baylor College of Medicine
  • Cancer Prevention and Research Institute of Texas
  • Cleveland Clinic
  • Damon Runyon Cancer Research Foundation
  • Gordon and Betty Moore Foundation
  • National Cancer Institute
  • National Institute of General Medical Sciences
  • National Institutes of Health
  • National Science Foundation
  • Oregon Health & Science University
  • Stanford University
  • United States Department of Defense
  • University of Michigan
  • University of Texas Health Science Center at Houston
  • University of Texas at Austin

Tags

Fields of Study

  • Biology
  • Chemistry

Readers

  • Molecular Genetics
  • Oncology (Cancer Research).
  • Systems Analysis and Design

Technology Areas

  • Space