Limits to a classic paradigm: most transcription factors in E. coli regulate genes involved in multiple biological processes.

ABSTRACT: Transcription factors (TFs) are important drivers of cellular decision-making. When bacteria encounter a change in the environment, TFs alter the expression of a defined set of genes in order to adequately respond. It is commonly assumed that genes regulated by the same TF are involved in the same biological process. Examples of this are methods that rely on coregulation to infer function of not-yet-annotated genes. We have previously shown that only 21% of TFs involved in metabolism regulate functionally homogeneous genes, based on the proximity of the gene products' catalyzed reactions in the metabolic network. Here, we provide more evidence to support the claim that a 1-TF/1-process relationship is not a general property. We show that the observed functional heterogeneity of regulons is

SUBMITTER: Ledezma-Tejeida D 

PROVIDER: S-EPMC6649764 | biostudies-literature | 2019 Jul

REPOSITORIES: biostudies-literature