Do condensates perform functions beyond molecular binding?
In plain words
Many proteins form droplets in cells, but whether the droplet itself does a job, or forms only because the proteins happen to be sticky, is often unknown. Separating the two requires changing droplet formation without changing the proteins' other properties.
Precise statement
For a given condensate (nucleolus, stress granules, transcriptional condensates), determine whether phase separation itself, as distinct from the underlying molecular binding, changes a measurable cellular output (reaction rate, transcriptional burst frequency, stress survival), using perturbations that shift $c_{sat}$ while preserving binding affinities.
What would settle it
Separation-of-function mutants that abolish or induce condensation at fixed binding affinity, with measured effects on the cellular output.
Status in the literature
Unverified note: it names recent work and was partly written without a live literature search; it awaits a check by an editor.
Functional claims for transcriptional condensates remain disputed as of 2026.
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