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Updated: Jun 11, 2025

Real-Time Monitoring of Aurora kinase A Activation using Conformational FRET Biosensors in Live Cells
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Real-Time Monitoring of Aurora kinase A Activation using Conformational FRET Biosensors in Live Cells

Published on: July 30, 2020

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The significant others of aurora kinase a in cancer: combination is the key

Kumar Nikhil1,2, Kavita Shah3

  • 1Department of Chemistry, Purdue University Institute for Cancer Research, 560 Oval Drive, West Lafayette, IN, 47907, USA. nikhil.kumar@kiitbiotech.ac.in.

Biomarker Research
|September 28, 2024
PubMed

Insights

Aurora kinase A (AURKA) is crucial in cancer, but targeted drugs face challenges. Targeting AURKA

Area of Science:

  • Molecular Biology
  • Cancer Biology
  • Biochemistry

Background:

  • Aurora kinase A (AURKA) is a key mitotic kinase implicated in various cellular processes beyond mitosis, including DNA replication and cell cycle progression.
  • Overexpression of AURKA is frequently observed in many cancers, correlating with poor patient prognosis and survival.
  • Current AURKA-targeted therapies are limited by toxicity and efficacy issues, with no approved drugs available.

Purpose of the Study:

  • To review recent advances in understanding AURKA regulation and its direct cancer-specific targets.
  • To identify novel therapeutic strategies by exploring the feedback loops between AURKA and its substrates.
  • To investigate the potential of targeting AURKA substrates and combination therapies for cancer treatment.

Main Methods:

  • Review of recent scientific literature on AURKA regulation and function.
  • Analysis of 33 direct cancer-specific AURKA targets and their associated oncogenic signaling pathways.
  • Examination of feedback mechanisms between AURKA and its substrates in cancer cells.

Main Results:

  • AURKA plays critical roles in ciliogenesis, mitochondrial dynamics, and neuronal outgrowth, in addition to its mitotic functions.
  • AURKA overexpression promotes aggressive oncogenic phenotypes through phosphorylation of numerous pathological substrates.
  • A common theme identified is the involvement of AURKA in feedback loops with its substrates, contributing to its sustained hyperactivation in cancer.

Conclusions:

  • The dynamic interplay between AURKA and its substrates presents a potential therapeutic vulnerability.
  • Targeting these substrates could disrupt feedback loops, leading to reduced AURKA levels and safer therapeutics.
  • Combination therapies involving AURKA inhibition and targeting its substrates may offer effective treatment strategies for AURKA-driven cancers.
Keywords:
AURKACancerERHURPNFκBRASSF1SubstratesVHLp53

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