TY - JOUR TI - Protein phase separation and its role in tumorigenesis AU - Jiang, Shan AU - Fagman, Johan Bourghardt AU - Chen, Changyan AU - Alberti, Simon AU - Liu, Beidong A2 - Cole, Philip A VL - 9 PY - 2020 DA - 2020/11/03 SP - e60264 C1 - eLife 2020;9:e60264 DO - 10.7554/eLife.60264 UR - https://doi.org/10.7554/eLife.60264 AB - Cancer is a disease characterized by uncontrolled cell proliferation, but the precise pathological mechanisms underlying tumorigenesis often remain to be elucidated. In recent years, condensates formed by phase separation have emerged as a new principle governing the organization and functional regulation of cells. Increasing evidence links cancer-related mutations to aberrantly altered condensate assembly, suggesting that condensates play a key role in tumorigenesis. In this review, we summarize and discuss the latest progress on the formation, regulation, and function of condensates. Special emphasis is given to emerging evidence regarding the link between condensates and the initiation and progression of cancers. KW - phase separation KW - cancer KW - membraneless organelle KW - biomolecular condensate JF - eLife SN - 2050-084X PB - eLife Sciences Publications, Ltd ER -