NCBI Summary:
The import of proteins into the nucleus is a process that involves at least 2 steps. The first is an energy-independent docking of the protein to the nuclear envelope and the second is an energy-dependent translocation through the nuclear pore complex. Imported proteins require a nuclear localization sequence (NLS) which generally consists of a short region of basic amino acids or 2 such regions spaced about 10 amino acids apart. Proteins involved in the first step of nuclear import have been identified in different systems. These include the Xenopus protein importin and its yeast homolog, SRP1 (a suppressor of certain temperature-sensitive mutations of RNA polymerase I in Saccharomyces cerevisiae), which bind to the NLS. KPNA2 protein interacts with the NLSs of DNA helicase Q1 and SV40 T antigen and may be involved in the nuclear transport of proteins. KPNA2 also may play a role in V(D)J recombination [provided by RefSeq, Jul 2008]
General function
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Cellular localization
Nuclear
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Ovarian function
Oocyte maturation
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Proteomic profiling of murine oocyte maturation. Vitale AM et al. In an effort to better understand oocyte function, we utilized two-dimensional (2D) electrophoresis and mass spectrometry to identify proteins that are differentially expressed during murine oocyte maturation. Proteins from 500 germinal vesicle (GV) and metaphase II-(MII) arrested oocytes were extracted, resolved on 2D electrophoretic gels, and stained with silver. Analysis of the gels indicated that 12 proteins appeared to be differentially expressed between the GV and MII stage. These proteins were then cored from the 2D gels and identified by mass spectrometry as: transforming acidic coiled-coil protein 3 (TACC3), heat shock protein 105 (HSP105), programmed cell death six-interacting protein (PDCD6IP), stress-inducible phosphoprotein (STI1), importin alpha2, adenylsuccinate synthase (ADDS), nudix, spindlin, lipocalin, lysozyme, translationally controlled tumor protein (TCTP), and nucleoplasmin 2 (NPM2). Interestingly, PDCD6IP, importin alpha2, spindlin, and NPM2 appear slightly larger in mass and more acidic on the MII oocyte gel compared to the GV oocyte gel, suggesting that they may be post-translationally modified during oocyte maturation. Given NPM2 is an oocyte-restricted protein, we chose to further investigate its properties during oocyte maturation and preimplantation development. Real-Time RT-PCR showed that NPM2 mRNA levels rapidly decline at fertilization. Indirect immunofluorescence analysis showed that, with the exception of cortical localization in MII-arrested oocytes, NPM2 is localized to the nucleus of both GV stage oocytes and all stages of preimplantation embryos. We then performed one-dimensional (1D) western blot analysis of mouse oocytes and preimplantation embryos and found that, as implicated by the 2D gel comparison, NPM2 undergoes a phosphatase-sensitive electrophoretic mobility shift during the GV to MII transition. The slower migrating NPM2 form is also present in pronuclear embryos but by the two-cell stage, the majority of NPM2 exists as the faster migrating form, which persists to the blastocyst stage. Mol. Reprod. Dev. (c) 2006 Wiley-Liss, Inc.
Expression regulated by
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Ovarian localization
Primordial Germ Cell, Oocyte
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Changing expression and subcellular distribution of karyopherins during murine oogenesis. Mihalas B et al. (2015) Mammalian oocyte growth and development is driven by a strict program of gene expression that relies on the timely presence of transcriptional regulators via nuclear pores. By targeting specific cargos for nucleo-cytoplasmic transport, karyopherin proteins are key to the relocation of essential transcription factors and chromatin-remodeling factors into and out of the nucleus. Using multiple complementary techniques, here we establish that karyopherin genes and proteins are dynamically expressed and relocalised throughout mouse oogenesis and folliculogenesis. Of the karyopherins examined (Kpna1, Kpna2, Kpna3, Kpna4, Kpna6, Kpna7, Kpnb1, Ipo5 and Xpo1), all were expressed in the embryonic ovary with up-regulation of protein levels concomitant with meiotic entry for KPNA2, accompanied by redistribution of cellular localisation of KPNA2 and XPO1. In contrast, postnatal folliculogenesis revealed significant up-regulation of Kpna1, Kpna2, Kpna4, Kpna6 and Ipo5 and down-regulation of Kpnb1, Kpna7 and Xpo1 at the primordial to primary follicle transition. Karyopherins exhibited different localisation patterns in both oocytes and granulosa cells during folliculogenesis, with three karyopherins KPNA1, KPNA2 and IPO5, displaying marked enrichment in the nucleus by antral follicle stage. Remarkably varied subcellular expression profiles were also identified in isolated pre-ovulatory oocytes with karyopherins KPNA2, KPNB1 and IPO5 detected in the cytoplasm and at the nuclear rim and XPO1 in cytoplasmic aggregates. Intriguingly meiotic spindle staining was also observed for KPNB1 and XPO1 in MII eggs, implying roles for karyopherins outside of nucleo-cytoplasmic transport. Thus we propose that karyopherins, by targeting specific cargoes are likely to be key regulators of oocyte development.//////////////////