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Aurora B facilitates cholangiocarcinoma progression by stabilizing c-Myc
Ke Liu1, Xuxuan Zhou2, Fei Huang1
1College of Pharmacy, Jinan University, Guangzhou, China.
Background:
Cholangiocarcinoma (CCA), a malignancy that arises from biliary epithelial cells, has a dismal prognosis, and few targeted therapies are available. Aurora B, a key mitotic regulator, has been reported to be involved in the progression of various tumors, yet its role in CCA is still unclarified.
Methods:
Human CCA tissues and murine spontaneous CCA models were used to assess Aurora B expression in CCA. A loss-of-function model was constructed in CCA cells to determine the role of Aurora B in CCA progression. Subcutaneous and liver orthotopic xenograft models were used to assess the therapeutic potential of Aurora B inhibitors in CCA.
Results:
In murine spontaneous CCA models, Aurora B was significantly upregulated. Elevated Aurora B expression was also observed in 62.3% of human specimens in our validation cohort (143 CCA specimens), and high Aurora B expression was positively correlated with pathological parameters of tumors and poor survival. Knockdown of Aurora B by siRNA and heteroduplex oligonucleotide (HDO) or an Aurora B kinase inhibitor (AZD1152) significantly suppressed CCA progression via G2/M arrest induction. An interaction between Aurora B and c-Myc was found in CCA cells. Targeting Aurora B significantly reduced this interaction and accelerated the proteasomal degradation of c-Myc, suggesting that Aurora B promoted the malignant properties of CCA by stabilizing c-Myc. Furthermore, sequential application of AZD1152 or Aurora B HDO drastically improved the efficacy of gemcitabine in CCA.
Conclusions:
Aurora B plays an essential role in CCA progression by modulating c-Myc stability and represents a new target for treatment and chemosensitization in CCA.
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