Biophysical Society Bulletin | November 2022

Publications

Know the Editor Sarah Veatch University of Michigan

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(d)

Lamins

Ions and charged metabolites

ER

NE

Nucleosome Macromolecules

01× ,emulov suelcuN 2 mµ 3

p DNA

Lamins Reticulons

p DNA

p DNA

Editor, Membranes Biophysical Journal

p ions

p DNA

Ions

Reticulons

p macro

Sarah Veatch

Macromolecules

(b)

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How do you stay on top of all the latest developments in your field? Back when I was a starting graduate student, many of the papers I was reading to get up to speed on my projects were published in Biophysical Journal . I was a physics student, digging back through what was known at the time about lipid bilayer membranes—especially membranes that contained cholesterol. Right as I started, two foundational papers were published in Biophysical Journal , clearly demonstrating liq uid-liquid phase separation in membranes: one out of Fred Co hen ’s lab showing phase separation in membranes spanning an aperture (Biophys. J. 81:1486–1500 (2001)) and a second with stunning images of phase separation in giant vesicles taken by Luis Bagatolli (Biophys. J. 80:1417–1428 (2001)). Fast forward to the current day, with all of the preprints and tweets and many more journals seeking out biophysical con tent, and I value that papers published in Biophysical Journal have gone through a rigorous peer review process by mem bers of my field. I’m glad to be able to play my small part in bringing these stories to print through my role as an editorial board member. What are you currently working on that excites you? The decades since those early discoveries of phase sepa ration in membranes have brought a lot of clarity both into the biophysical principles that give rise to phase separation and into its relevance to functional processes at the plasma membrane of mammalian cells. This has opened the door to more fundamental questions actively being investigated in my lab and in other labs in the field. For example, are mem brane domains local environments that favor specific protein functional states? Do the same interactions that give rise to phase separation also affect how hydrophobic ligands bind to proteins? Can protein/RNA-driven liquid-liquid phase sepa ration in the cytoplasm synergize with membrane domains? The thing that excites me most is that we are in the privileged position of being able to “think big” because we work from a strong foundation. I can’t wait to see what happens next.

Editor’s Pick Biophysical Journal Nucleus size and its effect on nucleosome stability in living cells Artem K. Efremov, Ladislav Hovan, Jie Yan “The nucleus plays a central role in the life of eukaryotic cells, providing the highest level of control of intracellular process es. Depending on the stage of the cell cycle and/or surround ing environment, the size of the cell nucleus may undergo changes that are believed to cause chromatin reorganization, affecting gene transcription. However, there is currently no clear understanding of the molecular mechanisms that may be responsible for such regulation, the exact effect of which on chromatin structure remains unclear. In this study, by developing an advanced computational approach, the authors explore these problems from a physical perspective, revealing previously unknown mechanisms contributing to organization of the cell nucleus and chromatin.” Nucleus radius, µm Ions DNA NE + ER Macromolecules −1 0 −0.5 1 0.5 4 6 8 Presssure fraction 10 −1 10 −2 10 −3 Nucleus radius, µm 6 10 8 Equilibrium nucleus size p ions p DNA p macro p NE p ER p DNA p ions p macro + − − − − − Presssure, atm

10 5

10 4

10 3

, mN / m ∆σ ζ

Presssure, Pa

10 2

4

10

Predicted surface tension,

Version of Record Published September 21, 2022 DOI: https:/doi.org/10.1016/j.bpj.2022.09.019

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