What is a Major Difference Between the General and Regulatory

Question

What is a major difference between the general and regulatory transcription factors?
A) General transcription factors only regulate the housekeeping genes while regulatory transcription factors control all of the other genes.
B) General transcription factors are essential for any transcription for all genes while regulatory transcription factors regulate transcription of specific genes.
C) General transcription factors act as heterodimers while regulatory transcription factors act as monomers.
D) General transcription factors regulate basal genes while regulatory transcription factors control all of the other genes.

Accepted Answer

General transcription factors are required for basic transcriptional machinery in all genes, while regulatory transcription factors control the expression of specific genes by binding to enhancer or silencer regions near the gene promoter. Therefore, the major difference between the two is that general transcription factors are essential for all genes, while regulatory transcription factors are required for only specific genes.