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Thermodynamics of wetting, prewetting and surface phase transitions with surface binding.

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Bartolucci,  Giacomo
Max Planck Institute for Molecular Cell Biology and Genetics, Max Planck Society;

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Honigmann,  Alf
Max Planck Institute for Molecular Cell Biology and Genetics, Max Planck Society;

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Jülicher,  Frank
Max Planck Institute for Molecular Cell Biology and Genetics, Max Planck Society;

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Citation

Zhao, X. H., Bartolucci, G., Honigmann, A., Jülicher, F., & Weber, C. A. (2021). Thermodynamics of wetting, prewetting and surface phase transitions with surface binding. New Journal of Physics, 23(12): 123003. doi:10.1088/1367-2630/ac320b.


Cite as: https://hdl.handle.net/21.11116/0000-000A-0BC9-8
Abstract
In living cells, protein-rich condensates can wet the cell membrane and surfaces of membrane-bound organelles. Interestingly, many phase-separating proteins also bind to membranes leading to a molecular layer of bound molecules. Here we investigate how binding to membranes affects wetting, prewetting and surface phase transitions. We derive a thermodynamic theory for a three-dimensional bulk in the presence of a two-dimensional, flat membrane. At phase coexistence, we find that membrane binding facilitates complete wetting and thus lowers the wetting angle. Moreover, below the saturation concentration, binding facilitates the formation of a thick layer at the membrane and thereby shifts the prewetting phase transition far below the saturation concentration. The distinction between bound and unbound molecules near the surface leads to a large variety of surface states and complex surface phase diagrams with a rich topology of phase transitions. Our work suggests that surface phase transitions combined with molecular binding represent a versatile mechanism to control the formation of protein-rich domains at intra-cellular surfaces.