The Orphan Histidine Kinase TodK Influences Myxococcus xanthus Multicellular Development by Inactivating the CRP/Fnr Homolog, MrpC.
It is found that loss of TodK produces distinct developmental phenotypes that vary with environmental conditions, and quantitative phenotyping approaches can reveal biologically meaningful functions for orphan histidine kinases whose mutant phenotypes might otherwise appear subtle.