Related papers: Theoretical limits for sensing through phase separ…

We review a few representative examples of granular experiments or models where phase separation, accompanied by domain coarsening, is a relevant phenomenon. We first elucidate the intrinsic non-equilibrium, or athermal, nature of granular…

Non-equilibrium selection pressures were proposed for the formation of oligonucleotides with rich functionalities encoded in their sequences, such as catalysis. Since phase separation was shown to direct various chemical processes, we ask…

This paper constructs dynamical models and estimation algorithms for the concentration of target molecules in a fluid flow using an array of novel biosensors. Each biosensor is constructed out of protein molecules embedded in a synthetic…

In contexts ranging from embryonic development to bacterial ecology, cell populations migrate chemotactically along self-generated chemical gradients, often forming a propagating front. Here, we theoretically show that the stability of such…

A cell dynamics method for domain separation of diblock copolymers (DBCPs) interacting with nanoparticles (NPs) whose diffusion coefficients depend on chain configuration is proposed for self-assembly of DBCP/NP composites. Increasing NP…

Berg and Purcell [Biophys. J. 20, 193 (1977)] calculated how the accuracy of concentration sensing by single-celled organisms is limited by noise from the small number of counted molecules. Here we generalize their results to the sensing of…

With the rapid scaling of neural networks, data storage and communication demands have intensified. Dataset distillation has emerged as a promising solution, condensing information from extensive datasets into a compact set of synthetic…

Liquid-liquid phase separation is important across biology, physics, and materials science. Although usually studied at equilibrium, active components - such as motor proteins, enzymes, and synthetic microswimmers - are increasingly…

Here we investigate how the positions of a condensed phase can be controlled by using concentration gradients of a regulator that influences phase separation. We consider a mean field model of a ternary mixture where a concentration…

The precision of concentration sensing is improved when cells communicate. Here we derive the physical limits to concentration sensing for cells that communicate over short distances by directly exchanging small molecules (juxtacrine…

The application of an external field often renders empirical criteria for identifying liquid-gas phase transitions ambiguous. Here, we demonstrate that the finite-size scaling of the density profile provides a definitive criterion to…

The more we learn about the cytoplasm of cells, the more we realise that the cytoplasm is not uniform but instead is highly inhomogeneous. In any inhomogeneous solution, there are concentration gradients, and particles move either up or…

Mixtures of glass-forming fluids sometimes exhibit glass-glass phase separation at low temperatures. Here, we use a molecular dynamics simulation to study one of the simplest examples of the glass-glass phase separation. We consider a…

Isologous diversification theory for cell differentiation is proposed, based on simulations of interacting cells with biochemical networks and cell division process following consumption of some chemicals. According to the simulations of…

Biomolecular phase separation is typically attributed to the polymer physics of long, disordered chains. However, the underlying chemical grammar, i.e. the specific interactions between protein and RNA building blocks, remains poorly…

Liquid mixtures of many interacting components often exhibit numerous coexisting types of droplets. An exciting example is the cytosol of biological cells, where diverse droplets, called condensates, are essential for cellular function.…

We study chemical oscillators in the presence of phase separation. By imposing timescale separation between slow reactions and fast diffusion, we define a dynamics at phase equilibrium for the relevant degrees of freedom. We demonstrate…

In many biopolymer solutions, attractive interactions that stabilize finite-sized clusters at low concentrations also promote phase separation at high concentrations. Here we study a model biopolymer system that exhibits the opposite…

Biological cells are able to accurately sense chemicals with receptors at their surfaces, allowing cells to move towards sources of attractant and away from sources of repellent. The accuracy of sensing chemical concentration is ultimately…

Biological cells are often found to sense their chemical environment near the single-molecule detection limit. Surprisingly, this precision is higher than simple estimates of the fundamental physical limit, hinting towards active sensing…