Aurora A, mitotic entry, and spindle bipolarity

The kinase Aurora-A (Aur-A), which is enriched at centrosomes, is required for centrosome maturation and accurate chromosome segregation, and recent work implicates centrosomes as sites where the earliest activation of cyclin B1-cdc2 occurs. Here, we have used Xenopus egg extracts to investigate Aur-A's contribution to cell cycle progression and spindle morphology in the presence or absence of centrosomes. We find that addition of active Aur-A accelerates cdc2 activation and mitotic entry. Depletion of endogenous Aur-A or addition of inactive Aur-A, which lead to monopolar spindles, delays but does not block mitotic entry. These effects on timing and spindle structure do not require the presence of centrosomes or chromosomes. The catalytic domain alone of Aur-A is sufficient to restore spindle bipolarity; additional N-terminal sequences function in mitotic timing.