Aurora B facilitates cholangiocarcinoma progression by stabilizing c-Myc

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.