Core-shell Condensates
Core-shell Condensates - Related Videos
01:33
Aldol Condensation vs Claisen Condensation
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2025
Aldol condensation is an acid or base-catalyzed condensation between aldehydes or ketones to give an α,ꞵ-unsaturated carbonyl compound. A base-promoted condensation between ester molecules to produce a ꞵ-ketoester is known as the Claisen condensation. In the presence of a base, both reactions involve deprotonation of the acidic α hydrogen to produce the corresponding enolates. The nucleophilic enolates attack their respective nonenolized carbonyl compound forming a tetrahedral intermediate.
02:39
Phase Transitions: Vaporization and Condensation
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2020
The physical form of a substance changes on changing its temperature. For example, raising the temperature of a liquid causes the liquid to vaporize (convert into vapor). The process is called vaporization—a surface phenomenon. Vaporization occurs when the thermal motion of the molecules overcome the intermolecular forces, and the molecules (at the surface) escape into the gaseous state. When a liquid vaporizes in a closed container, gas molecules cannot escape. As these gas phase molecules...
02:10
The Nucleosome Core Particle
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2020
Nucleosomes are the DNA-histone complex, where the DNA strand is wound around the histone core. The histone core is an octamer containing two copies of H2A, H2B, H3, and H4 histone proteins. The paradox Nucleosomes, paradoxically, perform two opposite functions simultaneously. On the one hand, their main responsibility is to protect the delicate DNA strands from physical damage and help achieve a higher compaction ratio. While on the other hand, they must allow polymerase enzymes to access DNA...
01:27
Aldol Condensation with β-Diesters: Knoevenagel Condensation
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2025
The Knoevenagel condensation is an aldol-type reaction involving the condensation of aldehydes or ketones with active methylene compounds such as β-diesters to produce substituted olefins. The reaction is catalyzed by amine base, which abstracts the acidic α hydrogen of the activated methylene to generate a resonance stabilized enolate ion. The basic strength of the amine is insufficient to form the enolate of aldehydes or ketones. However, it acts as a nucleophile that attacks the carbonyl...
02:23
Visualizing the Effect of pH on Solubilization of the Influenza A Viral Core
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2026
Source: Stauffer, S. et al., In Vitro Disassembly of Influenza A Virus Capsids by Gradient Centrifugation. J. Vis. Exp. (2016)This video demonstrates the effect of pH on the solubilization of influenza A viral cores. Gel electrophoresis and protein staining reveal the progressive disassembly of the core structure under acidic conditions.
FAQs
Selective partitioning depends on molecular affinity, material composition, and interfacial interactions between the two regions. Components with stronger compatibility for the inner phase become enriched in the core, whereas others preferentially associate with the surrounding shell. By adjusting these interactions, bioengineers can influence which proteins, nucleic acids, or polymers are concentrated in each compartment and thereby alter local biochemical conditions.
Multivalent interactions provide multiple binding opportunities among proteins, nucleic acids, or synthetic polymers, allowing them to concentrate through liquid-liquid phase separation. The resulting dense phase can then reorganize into chemically distinct layers when components differ in affinity or composition. This coupling between condensation and selective partitioning gives the material an internal architecture rather than producing a uniformly mixed compartment.
Interfacial interactions help determine how the core contacts and is arranged within the shell. Differences in affinity at this boundary can favor separation into distinct layers, influence molecular exchange, and preserve compositional organization. Because the interface connects the two regions, modifying its chemical properties can provide a way to regulate compartment structure and the access of molecules to the core.
Core-shell condensates organize materials through phase behavior and selective molecular interactions rather than through a membrane boundary. This can provide compartmentalization while retaining a dynamic interface between regions, allowing molecular exchange to be regulated by composition and affinity. The distinction is useful in bioengineering because condensates offer a nonmembranous route for studying or designing spatial organization of biochemical components.
A design begins by selecting proteins, nucleic acids, or synthetic polymers that can participate in multivalent interactions, then matching their compositions and affinities to produce distinct inner and outer regions. Researchers can tune interfacial interactions and molecular partitioning to place desired components in each layer. The resulting architecture can be evaluated by the organization of components and the exchange between compartments.
Core-shell condensates can concentrate selected reaction components in defined regions, bringing compatible molecules together while separating others into the shell or surrounding phase. This spatial arrangement may regulate access, molecular exchange, and the local composition experienced by a reaction. In bioengineering, that capability supports experiments on how compartment architecture influences biochemical function without requiring a membrane-bound container.
The tunable separation of core and shell regions supports several bioengineering directions, including engineered protocells, responsive biomaterials, and drug delivery systems. These structures can also serve as models for intracellular compartmentalization, where researchers examine how spatial organization affects molecular concentration and biochemical activity. Their value lies in connecting controllable material composition with functional compartmental behavior.
They provide a controllable system for examining how biochemical function changes when molecules occupy different spatial environments. By varying composition, molecular affinity, and interfacial interactions, researchers can investigate how selective concentration and regulated exchange influence compartment behavior. This makes the platform relevant to bioengineering studies that seek to reproduce or analyze intracellular organization without relying exclusively on membrane-based structures.