[Expression of Aurora-B in non-small cell lung cancer and its clinical significance].

Objective: To study the expression of Aurora-B in non-small cell lung cancer (NSCLC) tissues and NSCLC cell lines.

Method: Aurora-B expression was examined using immunohistochemical SP method in 91 stage I and 69 stage II-III NSCLC tissues and 40 adjacent tissues. The mRNA and protein expressions of Aurora-B in NSCLC cell lines (A549, H460 and H1299) were examined by RT-PCR and Western blotting, respectively.

Results: The protein expression of Aurora-B was detected in 77.7% (94/121) of the tumor tissues and 9.8% (4/41) of the adjacent tissues, showing a significant difference between them (P<0.01). The positivity rate of Aurora-B protein was not related with the gender and age of NSCLC patients, but with lymph node metastasis, differentiation and histological type of NSCLC (P<0.05). Aurora-B was expressed in all the NSCLC cell lines (A549, H460 and H1299) at both mRNA and protein levels. A549 cells showed the highest expression of Aurora-B.

Conclusion: Aurora-B protein is highly expressed in NSCLC tissues and cell lines, and may play a crucial role in the invasion, metastasis and development of NSCLC. The mRNA and protein expression levels of Aurora-B differ significantly between different NSCLC cell lines.