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pH-Controlled Coacervate−Membrane Interactions within Liposomes

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May 5, 2020

Membraneless organelles formed by liquid-liquid phase separation are ubiquitously employed by living cells to spatiotemporally regulate their internal biochemistry. Here, we present an on-chip microfluidic method to study the formation of these important organelles inside cell-mimicking bottom-up containers represented by liposomes. We are able to control the onset of phase separation using pH change, and can further induce interactions between the organelles and the surrounding membrane. Our technique will be useful to make further advancements in the field of synthetic cells and in studying biologically relevant phase separation reactions in a bottom-up manner.