Phase Separation of Chromatin Structure-related Biomolecules: A Driving Force for Epigenetic Regulations

Abstract

Intracellularly, membrane-less organelles are formed by spontaneous fusion and fission of macro-molecules in a process called phase separation, which plays an essential role in cellular activities. In certain disease states, such as cancers and neurodegenerative diseases, aberrant phase separations take place and participate in disease progression. Chromatin structure-related proteins, based on their characteristics and upon external stimuli, phase separate to exert functions like genome assembly, transcription regulation, and signal transduction. Moreover, many chromatin structure-related proteins, such as histones, histone-modifying enzymes, DNA-modifying enzymes, and DNA methylation binding proteins, are involved in epigenetic regulations through phase separation. This review introduces phase separation and how phase separation affects epigenetics with a focus on chromatin structure-related molecules.