<p> The Impact protein is a translational regulator that ensures constant high levels of translation under amino acid starvation. It acts by interacting with Gcn1/Gcn1L1, thereby preventing activation of Gcn2 protein kinases (EIF2AK1 to 4) and subsequent down-regulation of protein synthesis. It is evolutionary conserved from eukaryotes to archaea [<cite idref="PUB00046141"/>]. </p>This entry represents Impact family members found mostly in bacteria, though there are also some archaeal sequences as well. Crystallography of the Escherichia coli protein YigZ shows a two-domain stucture, where the C-terminal domain is suggested to bind nucleic acids. The function of this proteins is unknown [<cite idref="PUB00032088"/>].