Defining Cell Cycle-Specific Interactions of the pRB Tumor Suppressor

Stadnicki, Emily Jane

Student Work

Defining Cell Cycle-Specific Interactions of the pRB Tumor Suppressor Public

The retinoblastoma protein is a tumor suppressant that is inactivated in almost all forms of cancer. One of the main functions of pRB is to prevent excessive cell growth prior to proliferation by inhibiting cell cycle progression. Over 300 proteins have been identified as interactors with pRB but the relevance of most of these interactions remains unclear. Since mitotic defects are observed when pRB is depleted, we hypothesize that pRB makes crucial and functionally relevant interactions with proteins that have important roles during mitosis. One candidate protein, Aurora B kinase, has an important role in mitotic chromosome segregation and has previously been suggested to interact with pRB in asynchronous cells. My analysis indicates that pRB and Aurora B likely interact in mitotic cells.

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