About this Research Topic

Background

Transcription is the fundamental process in all cells, in which the genetic information is copied from DNA template into messenger RNA. In bacteria, the evolutionarily conserved multi-subunit DNA-dependent RNA polymerase (RNAP) is the essential enzyme that is responsible for transcription. Transcription is the first and central step of gene expression and regulated by a variety of transcription factors. In addition, bacteria RNAP is not only an ideal research model for all cellular RNAPs, but also an important target for antibacterial drug development. Thus, understanding bacterial transcription and how it is regulated by various transcription factors is significant and greatly benefits public health.

With the resolution revolution of cryo-electron microscopy and the development of other exciting experimental approaches such as CRISPR-cas, global RNA-sequencing, and single cell analysis, the research field in bacterial transcription and its regulation has blossomed and plenty of long-standing questions or new questions rising from the new technical revolution have come across us. In this special collection, we would like to provide an open platform for the relevant community to collectively present their new data and ideas on the bacterial transcription and its regulation in order to enrich our knowledge and shred new lights on this well-studied research field.

Article types including research articles, reviews, mini reviews, methods, opinions, or perspective are welcome for this collection. The relevant research scopes are suggested as follows, but not limited to:

(1) Structure and mechanism of bacterial transcription and its regulation
(2) Functions of transcription regulators in physiological processes of bacteria
(3) Structure and mechanism of bacterial transcription factors
(4) Characterization of DNA promoters and regulatory elements

Keywords: transcription, RNA polymerase, Transcription factors, Transcription regulation, Gene expression, DNA promoter

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