Aurora kinase inhibitors as anti-cancer therapy : Anti-Cancer Drugs (original) (raw)
REVIEW ARTICLE
aDepartments of Medical Oncology and
bDermatology, Yale University School of Medicine, New Haven, Connecticut, USA
Correspondence to Associate Professor Muhammad Wasif Saif, MD, MBBS, Yale Cancer Center, Yale University School of Medicine, 333 Cedar Street, FMP 116, New Haven, CT 06520, USA
Tel: +1 203 737 1875; fax: +1 203 785 3788;
e-mail: [email protected]; [email protected]
Received 11 September 2009 Revised form accepted 6 November 2009
Abstract
Aurora kinases are serine and threonine kinases that function as key regulators of the mitosis process. There are three distint human aurora kinases known as Aurora A, Aurora B, and Aurora C. Aurora A and Aurora B are overexpressed in a number of human cancers including non-small cell lung cancer, glioblastomas, and upper gastrointestinal adenocarcinomas. Given their association with tumorigenesis, both Aurora A and Aurora B have been targeted for cancer therapy. Currently, a number of selective and nonselective aurora kinase inhibitors are being tested in preclinical and clinical settings as anti-tumor agents. We review the biology of human aurora kinases, followed by an overview of inhibitors undergoing current clinical investigations.
© 2010 Lippincott Williams & Wilkins, Inc.