HeLa cells: overexpression of importin alpha2

To test whether nuclear importin alpha2 can regulate transcription, we sought to examine gene expression changes in cells with nuclear accumulation of importin alpha2 by performing microarray analysis. We designed an experiment in which EGFP-fused full-length importin alpha2 was transfected into HeLa cells. To exclude the possibility that exogenous, full-length importin alpha2 protein enhances nuclear transport of karyophilic proteins such as transcription factors and thereby directly influences gene expression, a mutant of importin alpha2 which is mutated in the C-terminal CAS-binding domain was also transfected, so that it is never recycled to the cytoplasm and shows complete nuclear localization. We undertook to investigate whether there were changes in gene expression common to cells expressing the full-length importin alpha2 and the C-terminal mutant (C-mutant) isoform. EGFP vs. EGFP-importin alpha2 full length, or EGFP vs EGFP-importin alpha2 CAS-binding mutant. One replicate each. EGFP-expressing cells are used as a control.