Progress on the GntR family transcription regulators in bacteria

In bacteria, GntR family transcription regulators are the widespread family of transcription factors. Members of this family consist of two functional domains, a conserved N-terminal DNA-binding domain that contains a typical helix-turn-helix (HTH) motif and a C-terminal effector-binding or oligomerization domain. Usually, the amino acid sequences of N-terminal DNA-binding domains are highly conserved, but differ in the C-terminal effector-binding or oligomerization domains. In the past several decades, many GntR family transcription regulators have been characterized in a number of bacteria. These regulators control a variety of cellular processes such as cell motility, glucose metabolism, bacterial resistance, pathogenesis and virulence. In this review, we summarized the discovery, C-terminal domains, biological function and regulation mode of GntR family transcription regulators. This review will help researchers to obtain more knowledge about the functions and mechanisms of the GntR family transcriptional regulatory factors.