Therapeutic potential of Aurora kinase inhibitors in cancer

Aurora kinases (AKs) represent a family of serine/threonine protein kinases that regulate mitotic processes during cell division. They are primarily involved in regulating the multiple steps of mitosis, including centrosome duplication, formation of bipolar mitotic spindle, chromosome alignment on the mitotic spindle, establishment and maintenance of the spindle checkpoint and cytokinesis. As AKs are key regulators of mitosis, several studies have indicated that they have a strong association with cancer and are overexpressed in numerous cancerous cell lines as well as human malignancies. Thus, AKs represent a promising therapeutic target for anticancer drug development. In this review, the role of AKs in cancer, and the current status and therapeutic potential of AK inhibitors is discussed.