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Real-Time Monitoring of Aurora kinase A Activation using Conformational FRET Biosensors in Live Cells
Published on: July 30, 2020
A single starfish Aurora kinase performs the combined functions of Aurora-A and Aurora-B in human cells
Yusuke Abe1, Eiichi Okumura, Takamitsu Hosoya
1Laboratory of Cell and Developmental Biology, Graduate School of Bioscience, Tokyo Institute of Technology, Nagatsuta, Midori-ku, Yokohama 226-8501, Japan.
Abstract:
Aurora, an essential mitotic kinase, is highly conserved during evolution. Most vertebrates have at least two Aurora kinases, Aurora-A and Aurora-B, which have distinct functions in the centrosome-spindle and inner centromere-midbody, respectively. However, some non-vertebrate deuterostomes have only a single Aurora. It remains to be verified whether the single Aurora performs the same functions as vertebrate Auroras A and B combined. We have isolated a cDNA of a single Aurora (ApAurora) from the echinoderm starfish, Asterina pectinifera, and show that ApAurora displays most features of both Aurora-A and Aurora-B in starfish oocytes and early embryos. Furthermore, ApAurora that is stably expressed in HeLa cells can substitute for both human Aurora-A and Aurora-B when either is reduced by RNAi. A single ApAurora thus has properties of both Aurora-A and Aurora-B in starfish eggs and HeLa cells. Together with phylogenetic analysis indicating that ApAurora forms a clade with all types of vertebrate Auroras and single Auroras of non-vertebrate deuterostomes, our observations support the idea that the single Aurora found in non-vertebrate deuterostomes represents the ancestor that gave rise to various types of vertebrate Auroras. This study thus provides functional evidence for phylogenetic considerations.
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