controlling gene A gene that is involved in turning on or off the transcription of structural genes. Two types of genetic element exist in this process: a regulator and a receptor element. A receptor element is one that can be inserted into a gene, making it a mutant, and can also exit from the gene (the mutation is thus unstable). Both of these functions are under the influence of the regulator element, and are non-autonomous.

controlling gene A gene that is involved in turning on or off the transcription of structural genes. Two types of genetic element exist in this process: a regulator and a receptor element. A receptor element is one that can be inserted into a gene, making it a mutant, and can also exit from the gene. (The mutation is thus unstable.) Both of these functions are under the influence of the regulator element.