Sigma factors are multi-domain subunits of bacterial RNA polymerase (RNAP) that play
critical roles in transcription initiation, including the recognition and opening of promoters as …

Transcription initiation is the crucial focal point of gene expression in prokaryotes. The key
players in this process, sigma factors (σs), associate with the catalytic core RNA polymerase …

Extracytoplasmic function σ factors (ECFs) represent a fundamental and widely distributed
principle of bacterial signal transduction that connects the perception of a stimulus (input) …

Background Sinorhizobium meliloti is a soil-dwelling α-proteobacterium that possesses a
large, tripartite genome and engages in a nitrogen fixing symbiosis with its plant hosts …

Responding to environmental cues is a prerequisite for survival in the microbial world.
Extracytoplasmic function σ factors (ECFs) represent the third most abundant and by far the …

Highlights•Major themes shared by ECF sigma factors are highlighted.•The mechanisms of
promoter recognition are conserved among ECF sigma factors.•Most ECF sigmas are …

Extracytoplasmic function σ factors (ECFs) represent one of the major bacterial signal
transduction mechanisms in terms of abundance, diversity and importance, particularly in …

Background Bacillus subtilis is a very important Gram-positive model organism of high
biotechnological relevance, which is widely used as a host for the production of both …

The rational design of synthetic regulatory circuits critically hinges on the availability of
orthogonal and well-characterized building blocks. Here, we focus on extracytoplasmic …

A major form of transcriptional regulation in bacteria occurs through the exchange of the
primary σ factor of RNA polymerase (RNAP) with an alternative extracytoplasmic function …