A transcription factor is sometimes called a 'sequence-specific DNA-binding factor'. Alone or with other proteins, they promote or block RNA polymerase. RNA polymerase is the enzyme that copies genetic information from DNA to RNA for specific genes.[3][4][5]
Transcription factors have one or more DNA-binding domains (DBDs). These attach to sequences of DNA next to the genes they regulate.[6][7] Other proteins (such as coactivators, chromatin remodellers, histone acetylases or deacetylases, kinases, and methylases) also play crucial roles in gene regulation. Because they lack DNA-binding domains, they are not called transcription factors.[8]
Glossary:
gene expression – how information from a gene is used in the synthesis of a functional gene product such as a protein
↑Karin M (1990). "Too many transcription factors: positive and negative interactions". New Biol. 2 (2): 126–31. PMID2128034.
↑Roeder RG (1996). "The role of general initiation factors in transcription by RNA polymerase II". Trends Biochem. Sci. 21 (9): 327–35. doi:10.1016/0968-0004(96)10050-5. PMID8870495.