Research task (STEM):
Help me write a 2-page overview of the NELF-E protein's role in hepatocellular carcinoma, and how its ability to form bimolecular condensates might give clues as to its role in tumorigenisis. Please ensure that your overview is written such that a high-school AP Biology student can clearly understand what you are saying.

Evaluation rubric:
criterion: The response contains between 850 and 1100 words, the standard for a 2-page report.
weight: 5
axis: Instruction Following

criterion: The first time the terms "NELF-E" appears, the response defines it in the same or adjacent sentence (Negative Elongation Factor E).
weight: 5
axis: Implicit Criteria

criterion: Employs at least one everyday analogy (e.g., oil droplets, separation of cream in milk, lava lamp, coconut) to easily explain and break down the concept of how liquid-liquid phase separation forms biomolecular condensates.
weight: 2
axis: Implicit Criteria

criterion: The response accessibly introduces the disease of hepatocellular carcinoma by first explaining that it is the most common form of liver cancer.
weight: 5
axis: Implicit Criteria

criterion: The response mentions genetic therapy as an option to repair dysfunctional NELF-E.
weight: 3
axis: Implicit Criteria

criterion: The response explains NELF-E's role in the process of transcription in a manner which is appropriate for an AP Biology Student (i.e., NELF-E "grabs on" to RNA after it is produced, it has ability to press pause/act as a red light on the process of transcription, encourages repair at DNA break sites, specifically interacts with Polymerase II which transcribes precursors of mRNA).
weight: 3
axis: Implicit Criteria

criterion: The response specifically explains that NELF-E works as a part of the NELF complex to induce or maintain promoter-proximal pausing of RNA polymerase II.
weight: 3
axis: Implicit Criteria

criterion: The response mentions the research by Dang et. al (2025) that establishes a proposed connection between NELF-E condensates and the suppression of pro-apoptotic genes and the activation of pro-growth genes.
weight: 3
axis: References & Citation Quality

criterion: The mentions and classifies the proteins MYC and SMARCB1 as proteins that NELF-E frequently interacts with, emphasizing that both have been found to be involved with tumor suppression. 
weight: 4
axis: Implicit Criteria

criterion: The response describes low-complexity regions (LCRs) as stretches of amino acids with repetitive composition that promote liquid-liquid phase separation.
weight: 2
axis: Implicit Criteria

criterion: The response provides a short explanation of at least one relevant lab protocol (e.g., CRISPR is a genome-editing technique that uses the Cas9 enzyme to produce breaks at targeted DNA sites for gene inactivation or insert targeted sequences, ATAC-seq is a popular method for revealing chromatin accessibility at the genome level,  FRAP laser bleaches fluorescently-labeled moclecules to track their movement, PCR is used to make millions or billions of copies of a DNA or RNA segment)
weight: 2
axis: Implicit Criteria

criterion: The response mentions at least two pathways or biological process influenced by NELF-E which are relevant to tumorigenesis in general (e.g., RNA Polymerase II elongation control, MYC-driven transcription, metastasis, DNA repair).
weight: 5
axis: Explicit Criteria

criterion: The response describes at least one known or plausible mechanism by which protein condensates contribute to cancer (e.g., sequestration of tumor suppressors, enhancement of oncogene transcription, epigenetic silencing, aberrant splicing).
weight: 5
axis: Implicit Criteria

criterion: The first time “biomolecular condensate” appears, the response defines it in the same or adjacent sentence in an accesible manner, i.e., membrane-less compartments in eukaryotic cells which concentrate biomolecules such as proteins and nucleic acids. 
weight: 5
axis: Implicit Criteria

criterion: The response details at least two pathways and genes related to hepatocellular carcinoma (HCC) which are affected by overexpression or mutations of NELF-E (e.g. amplifies MYC transcription programs associated to HCC, alters recruitment of BRCA1 recruitment, alters recruitment of RAD51, disrupts promoter-proximal pausing). 
weight: 4
axis: Implicit Criteria

criterion: The response explains promoter-proximal pausing in an accessible manner, i.e., when transcription is inititated and then pauses, accumulating RNA Pol II ~30-60 nucleotides downstream of the start site, which thought to be a regulatory mechanism for higher eukaryotes.  
weight: 1
axis: Implicit Criteria

criterion: The response reads as a report similar to content familiar to AP Biology students (e.g., Campbell Biology, Princeton Review AP Biology, Kaplan's AP Biology, Barron's AP Biology). 
weight: 4
axis: Explicit Criteria

criterion: The response suggests that genetic therapeutic treatment may have to target an axis of interaction, (e.g., NELF-E-MYC, NELF-E-BRCA1, NELF-E-RAD51, NELF-E with other NELF subunits). 
weight: 4
axis: Synthesis of Information

criterion: The response discusses elements of tumorigenesis not specifically relevant to HCC, NELF-E, or biomolecular condensates (e.g., angiogenesis, MAPK pathways, hereditary cancer, T Cells). 
weight: -3
axis: Implicit Criteria

criterion: The response links the tumorigenic properties of biomolecular condensates to the functions of NELF-E.
weight: 5
axis: Explicit Criteria

criterion: The response emphasizes the regulation of MYC by NELF-E as the most relevant interaction for HCC. 
weight: 4
axis: Synthesis of Information

criterion: The response uses technical language (e.g., foci, assay, isoform, recombinant)  that would only be found in a medical journal article (e.g., PubMed, NEJM, Nature, Cell) or higher-education content.
weight: -4
axis: Explicit Criteria

criterion: The response focuses on the NELF-E protein over the NELFE gene.
weight: 4
axis: Implicit Criteria

criterion: The response correctly links NELF-E's modulation of chromatin accessibility with the downregulation of genes which (healthily) encourage cell death.
weight: 4
axis: Synthesis of Information

criterion: The response observes that higher levels of NELF-E are reported for those with pancreatic cancer, HCC, and gastric cancer.  
weight: 5
axis: Implicit Criteria

criterion: The response mentions that NELF-E must be considered alongside the other NELF subunits (especially A and B) to fully understand its role in tumorigenesis. 
weight: 4
axis: Synthesis of Information