“Exploration of Novel Anticancerous Agents Targeting Human Aurora Kinase C”

Abstract

Aurora kinases (AKs), a family of serine/threonine kinases, play a vital role in chromosome segregation during the cell cycle (Mountzios et al., 2008). This family includes Aurora Kinase A (AKA), Aurora Kinase B (AKB), and Aurora Kinase C (AKC). AKA and AKB are active during mitosis, while AKC is involved mostly in germ cell as well as somatic cells. Elevated levels of AKC have been found in several cancer cell lines including breast, cervical, thyroid, colorectal, and liver cancers, making it a significant target for cancer therapy (Tang et al., 2017). In cancers such as glioblastoma and prostate cancer, for example, AKC up regulation has been associated with increased tumor aggressiveness, highlighting its potential role in tumor progression and poor prognosis. Our study employs computational methods, including molecular docking and structure-based virtual screening, to explore a data set of 2 65 241 compounds from the National Cancer Institute (NCI) database, focusing on AKC as a potential target for drug discovery. Through docking studies, several promising compounds that interact with the enzyme's ATP binding pocket, particularly with residues Phe54, Lys72, Ala123, Glu121 and Glu127 of AKC, were identified. The stability of these interactions was assessed through 200-ns molecular dynamics (MD) simulations, revealing that the majority of compounds exhibited stable interactions, while a few displayed fluctuations in their trajectories. Most compounds adhered to favorable pharmacokinetic properties. Comprehensive MD simulations and free energy calculations identified three top candidates (90 729, 37 623, and 134 546) with strong potential as potent inhibitors of AKC. Additional in vitro and in vivo studies are required to confirm the therapeutic potential of these candidates.