Fig. 6: The stability diagram of a pair of coexisting condensates provides a link between intermolecular interactions and multiphasic morphology.

a Stability diagram for PLP droplets coexistence pattern with RRP-RNA droplets from fluid-interface modeling simulations. In these simulations, \(\gamma _{\mathrm{PLP}}\) was fixed and \(\gamma _{\mathrm{RRP} + \mathrm{RNA}}\) and \(\gamma _{[\mathrm{RRP} + \mathrm{RNA}] - \mathrm{PLP}}\) were varied. The shaded regions mark the different morphological states: total engulfment (TE), partial engulfment (PE), and non-engulfment (NE). The solid black arrow indicates a continuous morphological transition with RNA dosage as described in the text. The dashed lines correspond to discrete transitions due to sequence variations. b Simulation strips showing the continuous and discrete morphological transitions as the values of the interfacial tensions are varied along with the corresponding arrows in the stability diagram in (a). c–f Schematic diagrams showing the interactions between the ternary components as well as the observed morphology as a function of RNA concentration. The schematic plots show how the interactions between the two types of droplets (χ) are expected to change as a function of RNA dosage. The solid lines in the schematic interaction diagrams indicate strong interactions while the dashed lines indicate weak and/or absent interactions.