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Comparison of classical and autogenous systems of regulation in inducible operons

Abstract

The mechanism of autogenous regulation, whereby a protein directly controls the expression of its own structural gene, is compared on the basis of function with the classical mechanism, in which the structural gene of the regulator is itself unregulated. The autogenous mechanism is superior to the classical one in inducible catabolic systems governed by a repressor; the opposite is true if the regulator is an activator.

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Savageau, M. Comparison of classical and autogenous systems of regulation in inducible operons. Nature 252, 546–549 (1974). https://doi.org/10.1038/252546a0

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