Integrin-regulated gene expression in immortalized keratinocytes

Gene-level analysis of gene expression in immortalized mouse keratinocyte lines that express integrins alpha3beta1 and alpha9beta1 in different combinations. The integrins alpha3beta1 and alpha9beta1 are expressed highly in the epidermis, but their roles in regulating gene expression programs that promote normal or pathological wound healing have not been explored previously. In order to identify genes that are regulated by these integrins in keratinocytes, we used microarray approaches to identify integrin-dependent genes in mouse keratinocytes that were immortalized with SV40 large T antigen (i.e., MK cells). We used the Affymetrix Mouse Exon 1.0 ST platform to analyze biological replicates of MK cell lines that were derived from alpha3-null mice (MK546), as well as variants of this line in which human integrin subunits alpha3 and/or alpha9 were expressed in different combinations. Array data was processed by Affymetrix Exon Array Computational Tool.