AKIP (AURKA-interacting protein), also known as AURKAIP1 (aurora kinase A interacting protein 1) or AIP, is a 199 amino acid protein that localizes to the nucleus and is ubiquitously expressed, with highest levels present in testis, heart and skeletal muscle. Interacting specifically with ARK-1 (aurora kinase 1), AKIP functions to induce the proteasomal-dependent degradation of ARK-1, thereby acting as a negative regulator of ARK-1 activity. AKIP is encoded by a gene which maps to human chromosome 1, which spans 260 million base pairs, contains over 3,000 genes and comprises nearly 8% of the human genome. Chromosome 1 houses a large number of disease-associated genes, including those that are involved in familial adenomatous polyposis, Stickler syndrome, Parkinson’s disease, Gaucher disease, schizophrenia and Usher syndrome. Aberrations in chromosome 1 are found in a variety of cancers, including head and neck cancer, malignant melanoma and multiple myeloma.
