摘要:SummaryAMP-activated protein kinase (AMPK) senses energy status and impacts energy-consuming events by initiating metabolism regulatory signals in cells. Accumulating evidences suggest a role of AMPK in mitosis regulation, but the mechanism of mitotic AMPK activation and function remains elusive. Here we report that AMPKα2, but not AMPKα1, is sequentially phosphorylated and activated by CDK1 and PLK1, which enables AMPKα2 to accurately guide chromosome segregation in mitosis. Phosphorylation at Thr485 by activated CDK1-Cyclin B1 brings the ST-stretch of AMPKα2 to the Polo box domain of PLK1 for subsequent Thr172 phosphorylation by PLK1. Inserting of the AMPKα2 ST-stretch into AMPKα1, which lacks the ST-stretch, can correct mitotic chromosome segregation defects in AMPKα2-depleted cells. These findings uncovered a specific signaling cascade integrating sequential phosphorylation by CDK1 and PLK1 of AMPKα2 with mitosis to maintain genomic stability, thus defining an isoform-specific AMPKα2 function, which will facilitate future research on energy sensing in mitosis.Graphical abstractDisplay OmittedHighlights•AMPKα2 is selectively activated during mitosis by CDK1 and PLK1•A conserved motif in AMPKα2 determines its interaction with and activation by PLK1•Mitotic AMPK activation contributes to maintain genomic stability in normal mitosisBiological Sciences ; Cell Biology ; Cell