ERK signaling dissolves ERF repression condensates in living embryos. Author Claire Weaver, Aleena Patel, Stanislav Shvartsman, Michael Levine, Nicholas Treen Publication Year 2022 Type Journal Article Abstract Phase separation underlies the organization of the nucleus, including the biogenesis of nucleoli and the packaging of heterochromatin. Here we explore the regulation of transcription factor condensates involved in gene repression by ERK signaling in gastrulating embryos of a simple proto-vertebrate (). ERK signaling induces nuclear export of the transcriptional repressor Ets-2 repressive factor (ERF), which has been linked to various human developmental disorders. Using high-resolution imaging, we show that ERF is localized within discrete nuclear condensates that dissolve upon ERK activation. Interestingly, we observe dynamic pulses of assembly and dissociation during interphase, providing visualization of a nuclear phase separation process regulated by cell signaling. We discuss the implications of these observations for producing sharp on/off switches in gene activity and suppressing noise in cell-cell signaling events. Keywords developmental biology, phase separation, transcriptional repression Journal Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences of the United States of America Volume 119 Issue 9 Date Published 03/2022 ISSN Number 1091-6490 DOI 10.1073/pnas.2119187119 Alternate Journal Proc Natl Acad Sci U S A PMCID PMC8892517 PMID 35217620 PubMedPubMed CentralGoogle ScholarBibTeXEndNote X3 XML