Quantifying phase separation at the nanoscale by dual-color fluorescence cross-correlation spectroscopy (dcFCCS)

Abstract

Liquid–liquid phase separation (LLPS) causes the formation of membraneless condensates, which play important roles in diverse cellular processes. Currently, optical microscopy is the most commonly used method to visualize micron-scale phase-separated condensates. Because the optical spatial resolution is restricted by the diffraction limit (~200 nm), dynamic formation processes from individual biomolecules to micron-scale condensates are still mostly unknown. Herein, we provide a detailed protocol applying dual-color fluorescence cross-correlation spectroscopy (dcFCCS) to detect and quantify condensates at the nanoscale, including their size, growth rate, molecular stoichiometry, and the binding affinity of client molecules within condensates. We expect that the quantitative dcFCCS method can be widely applied to investigate many other important phase separation systems.

Graphical abstract

Keywords

Liquid-liquid phase separation / Nanoscale / Dual-color fluorescence cross-correlation spectroscopy / Molecular stoichiometry / Binding affinity