Polo-like kinase 1 as a potential therapeutic target for osteosarcoma.

Osteosarcoma is the most common primary bone malignancy of adolescents and young adults. Existing treatment options and surgical intervention are unable to effectively manage this tumor. Therefore, novel mechanism-based targets and strategies need to be rationally established to strive for improvement in the survival of patients diagnosed with osteosarcoma. The serine/threonine kinases Polo-like kinase (Plk) 1 is a key regulator of cell division in eukaryotic cells. Plk1 gene and protein expression has been proposed as a new prognostic marker for many types of malignancies, and Plk1 is a potential target for cancer therapy. In this review, we shall discuss the studies which indicate that Plk1 could be an excellent target for the treatment of osteosarcoma.