Related Experiment Video
Updated: Feb 8, 2026

Optogenetic Phase Transition of TDP-43 in Spinal Motor Neurons of Zebrafish Larvae
Published on: February 25, 2022
Kinase-controlled phase transition of membraneless organelles in mitosis
Arpan Kumar Rai1, Jia-Xuan Chen2,3, Matthias Selbach2,4
1Department of Molecular Life Sciences, University of Zurich, Zurich, Switzerland.
Abstract:
Liquid-liquid phase separation has been shown to underlie the formation and disassembly of membraneless organelles in cells, but the cellular mechanisms that control this phenomenon are poorly understood. A prominent example of regulated and reversible segregation of liquid phases may occur during mitosis, when membraneless organelles disappear upon nuclear-envelope breakdown and reappear as mitosis is completed. Here we show that the dual-specificity kinase DYRK3 acts as a central dissolvase of several types of membraneless organelle during mitosis. DYRK3 kinase activity is essential to prevent the unmixing of the mitotic cytoplasm into aberrant liquid-like hybrid organelles and the over-nucleation of spindle bodies. Our work supports a mechanism in which the dilution of phase-separating proteins during nuclear-envelope breakdown and the DYRK3-dependent degree of their solubility combine to allow cells to dissolve and condense several membraneless organelles during mitosis.
More Related Videos
Related Concept Videos
Phase Transitions
Phase Transitions: Sublimation and Deposition
Phase Transitions: Melting and Freezing
M-Cdk Drives Transition Into Mitosis
Cyclin-dependent kinases, or Cdks, work in concert with cyclins to control cell cycle transitions. M-Cdk, a complex of Cdk1 bound to M cyclin, is a well-known example of this coordinated control that drives the transition from the G2 to the M phase.
M cyclin...
Phase Transitions: Vaporization and Condensation
Mitosis and Cytokinesis
The processes of the cell cycle occur over approximately 24 hours (in typical human cells) and in two major distinguishable stages. The...

