Member of a two-component regulatory system involved in control of gene expression; inhibits synthesis of (at least) the polyketide antibiotic thailandamide. Its two-component partner may be BTH_I0635. ATP + protein L-histidine = ADP + protein N-phospho-L-histidine. Increased production of thailandamide. Inhibits growth of Salmonella in an overlay assay. Thailandamide is a polyketide that is toxic to human cell lines but also has antibacterial activity on E.coli, S.typhimurium and S.aureus. It probably acts on acetyl-CoA carboxylase in the fatty acid synthesis pathway, which is rarely found to be an antibiotic target. These data suggest it might be a good starting point for engineering of novel antibiotics.