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Pharmacological Research Feb 2024Owing to the dysregulation of protein kinase activity in many diseases including cancer, this enzyme family has become one of the most important drug targets in the 21st... (Review)
Review
Owing to the dysregulation of protein kinase activity in many diseases including cancer, this enzyme family has become one of the most important drug targets in the 21st century. There are 80 FDA-approved therapeutic agents that target about two dozen different protein kinases and seven of these drugs were approved in 2023. Of the approved drugs, thirteen target protein-serine/threonine protein kinases, four are directed against dual specificity protein kinases (MEK1/2), twenty block nonreceptor protein-tyrosine kinases, and 43 inhibit receptor protein-tyrosine kinases. The data indicate that 69 of these drugs are prescribed for the treatment of neoplasms. Six drugs (abrocitinib, baricitinib, deucravacitinib, ritlecitinib, tofacitinib, upadacitinib) are used for the treatment of inflammatory diseases (atopic dermatitis, rheumatoid arthritis, psoriasis, alopecia areata, and ulcerative colitis). Of the 80 approved drugs, nearly two dozen are used in the treatment of multiple diseases. The following seven drugs received FDA approval in 2023: capivasertib (HER2-positive breast cancer), fruquintinib (metastatic colorectal cancer), momelotinib (myelofibrosis), pirtobrutinib (mantle cell lymphoma, chronic lymphocytic leukemia, small lymphocytic lymphoma), quizartinib (Flt3-mutant acute myelogenous leukemia), repotrectinib (ROS1-positive lung cancer), and ritlecitinib (alopecia areata). All of the FDA-approved drugs are orally effective with the exception of netarsudil, temsirolimus, and trilaciclib. This review summarizes the physicochemical properties of all 80 FDA-approved small molecule protein kinase inhibitors including the molecular weight, number of hydrogen bond donors/acceptors, polar surface area, potency, solubility, lipophilic efficiency, and ligand efficiency.
Topics: Humans; Adult; Protein Kinase Inhibitors; Alopecia Areata; Protein-Tyrosine Kinases; Proto-Oncogene Proteins; Protein Serine-Threonine Kinases; Protein Kinases; Neoplasms
PubMed: 38216005
DOI: 10.1016/j.phrs.2024.107059 -
International Journal of Molecular... Sep 2022Ca/calmodulin-dependent protein kinase kinase (CaMKK) is the activating kinase for multiple downstream kinases, including CaM-kinase I (CaMKI), CaM-kinase IV (CaMKIV),... (Review)
Review
Ca/calmodulin-dependent protein kinase kinase (CaMKK) is the activating kinase for multiple downstream kinases, including CaM-kinase I (CaMKI), CaM-kinase IV (CaMKIV), protein kinase B (PKB/Akt), and 5'AMP-kinase (AMPK), through the phosphorylation of their activation-loop Thr residues in response to increasing the intracellular Ca concentration, as CaMKK itself is a Ca/CaM-dependent enzyme. The CaMKK-mediated kinase cascade plays important roles in a number of Ca-dependent pathways, such as neuronal morphogenesis and plasticity, transcriptional activation, autophagy, and metabolic regulation, as well as in pathophysiological pathways, including cancer progression, metabolic syndrome, and mental disorders. This review focuses on the molecular mechanism underlying CaMKK-mediated signal transduction in normal and pathophysiological conditions. We summarize the current knowledge of the structural, functional, and physiological properties of the regulatory kinase, CaMKK, and the development and application of its pharmacological inhibitors.
Topics: AMP-Activated Protein Kinases; Adenosine Monophosphate; Calcium-Calmodulin-Dependent Protein Kinase Kinase; Calcium-Calmodulin-Dependent Protein Kinases; Humans; Phosphorylation; Proto-Oncogene Proteins c-akt; Signal Transduction
PubMed: 36232320
DOI: 10.3390/ijms231911025 -
Expert Reviews in Molecular Medicine Jun 2020DNA damage response (DDR) pathway prevents high level endogenous and environmental DNA damage being replicated and passed on to the next generation of cells via an... (Review)
Review
DNA damage response (DDR) pathway prevents high level endogenous and environmental DNA damage being replicated and passed on to the next generation of cells via an orchestrated and integrated network of cell cycle checkpoint signalling and DNA repair pathways. Depending on the type of damage, and where in the cell cycle it occurs different pathways are involved, with the ATM-CHK2-p53 pathway controlling the G1 checkpoint or ATR-CHK1-Wee1 pathway controlling the S and G2/M checkpoints. Loss of G1 checkpoint control is common in cancer through TP53, ATM mutations, Rb loss or cyclin E overexpression, providing a stronger rationale for targeting the S/G2 checkpoints. This review will focus on the ATM-CHK2-p53-p21 pathway and the ATR-CHK1-WEE1 pathway and ongoing efforts to target these pathways for patient benefit.
Topics: Ataxia Telangiectasia Mutated Proteins; Cell Cycle Checkpoints; Cell Cycle Proteins; Checkpoint Kinase 1; Checkpoint Kinase 2; DNA Damage; DNA Repair; Humans; Neoplasms; Protein Kinase Inhibitors; Protein Kinases; Protein-Tyrosine Kinases; Signal Transduction
PubMed: 32508294
DOI: 10.1017/erm.2020.3 -
Pharmacological Research Jan 2022Owing to the dysregulation of protein kinase activity in many diseases including cancer, this enzyme family has become one of the most important drug targets in the 21st... (Review)
Review
Owing to the dysregulation of protein kinase activity in many diseases including cancer, this enzyme family has become one of the most important drug targets in the 21st century. There are 68 FDA-approved therapeutic agents that target about two dozen different protein kinases and six of these drugs were approved in 2021. Of the approved drugs, twelve target protein-serine/threonine protein kinases, four are directed against dual specificity protein kinases (MEK1/2), thirteen block nonreceptor protein-tyrosine kinases, and 39 target receptor protein-tyrosine kinases. The data indicate that 58 of these drugs are prescribed for the treatment of neoplasms (49 against solid tumors including breast, lung, and colon, five against nonsolid tumors such as leukemias, and four against both solid and nonsolid tumors: acalabrutinib, ibrutinib, imatinib, and midostaurin). Three drugs (baricitinib, tofacitinib, upadacitinib) are used for the treatment of inflammatory diseases including rheumatoid arthritis. Of the 68 approved drugs, eighteen are used in the treatment of multiple diseases. The following six drugs received FDA approval in 2021 for the treatment of these specified diseases: belumosudil (graft vs. host disease), infigratinib (cholangiocarcinomas), mobocertinib and tepotinib (specific forms of non-small cell lung cancer), tivozanib (renal cell carcinoma), and trilaciclib (to decrease chemotherapy-induced myelosuppression). All of the FDA-approved drugs are orally effective with the exception of netarsudil, temsirolimus, and the newly approved trilaciclib. This review summarizes the physicochemical properties of all 68 FDA-approved small molecule protein kinase inhibitors including lipophilic efficiency and ligand efficiency.
Topics: Administration, Oral; Animals; Drug Approval; Humans; Protein Kinase Inhibitors; Protein Kinases; United States; United States Food and Drug Administration
PubMed: 34921994
DOI: 10.1016/j.phrs.2021.106037 -
Trends in Plant Science Jul 2023Cysteine-rich receptor-like kinases (CRKs) belong to a large DUF26-containing receptor-like kinase (RLK) family. They play key roles in immunity, abiotic stress... (Review)
Review
Cysteine-rich receptor-like kinases (CRKs) belong to a large DUF26-containing receptor-like kinase (RLK) family. They play key roles in immunity, abiotic stress response, and growth and development. How CRKs regulate diverse processes is a long-standing question. Recent studies have advanced our understanding of the molecular mechanisms underlying CRK functions in Ca influx, reactive oxygen species (ROS) production, mitogen-activated protein kinase (MAPK) cascade activation, callose deposition, stomatal immunity, and programmed cell death (PCD). We review the CRK structure-function relationship with a focus on the roles of CRKs in immunity, the abiotic stress response, and the growth-stress tolerance tradeoff. We provide a critical analysis and synthesis of how CRKs control sophisticated regulatory networks that determine diverse plant phenotypic outputs.
Topics: Arabidopsis; Cysteine; Protein Serine-Threonine Kinases; Plants; Protein Kinases; Gene Expression Regulation, Plant
PubMed: 37105805
DOI: 10.1016/j.tplants.2023.03.028 -
Nature Reviews. Immunology Dec 2023Protein kinases play a major role in cellular activation processes, including signal transduction by diverse immunoreceptors. Given their roles in cell growth and death... (Review)
Review
Protein kinases play a major role in cellular activation processes, including signal transduction by diverse immunoreceptors. Given their roles in cell growth and death and in the production of inflammatory mediators, targeting kinases has proven to be an effective treatment strategy, initially as anticancer therapies, but shortly thereafter in immune-mediated diseases. Herein, we provide an overview of the status of small molecule inhibitors specifically generated to target protein kinases relevant to immune cell function, with an emphasis on those approved for the treatment of immune-mediated diseases. The development of inhibitors of Janus kinases that target cytokine receptor signalling has been a particularly active area, with Janus kinase inhibitors being approved for the treatment of multiple autoimmune and allergic diseases as well as COVID-19. In addition, TEC family kinase inhibitors (including Bruton's tyrosine kinase inhibitors) targeting antigen receptor signalling have been approved for haematological malignancies and graft versus host disease. This experience provides multiple important lessons regarding the importance (or not) of selectivity and the limits to which genetic information informs efficacy and safety. Many new agents are being generated, along with new approaches for targeting kinases.
Topics: Humans; Protein Kinases; Protein Kinase Inhibitors; Signal Transduction; Immune System Diseases
PubMed: 37188939
DOI: 10.1038/s41577-023-00877-7 -
Science Advances Jul 2022Exposure to cold triggers a spike in cytosolic calcium (Ca) that often leads to transcriptional reprogramming in plants. However, how this Ca signal is perceived and...
Exposure to cold triggers a spike in cytosolic calcium (Ca) that often leads to transcriptional reprogramming in plants. However, how this Ca signal is perceived and relayed to the downstream cold signaling pathway remains unknown. Here, we show that the CALCIUM-DEPENDENT PROTEIN KINASE 28 (CPK28) initiates a phosphorylation cascade to specify transcriptional reprogramming downstream of cold-induced Ca signal. Plasma membrane (PM)-localized CPK28 is activated rapidly upon cold shock within 10 seconds in a Ca-dependent manner. CPK28 then phosphorylates and promotes the nuclear translocation of NIN-LIKE PROTEIN 7 (NLP7), a transcription factor that specifies the transcriptional reprogramming of gene sets in response to Ca, thereby positively regulating plant response to cold stress. This study elucidates a previously unidentified mechanism by which the CPK28-NLP7 regulatory module integrates cold-evoked Ca signal and transcriptome and thus uncovers a key strategy for the rapid perception and transduction of cold signals from the PM to the nucleus.
Topics: Arabidopsis; Arabidopsis Proteins; Gene Expression Regulation, Plant; Protein Kinases
PubMed: 35767615
DOI: 10.1126/sciadv.abn7901 -
Cancer Gene Therapy Sep 2023Gastrointestinal cancers are a leading cause of cancer morbidity and mortality worldwide with 4.2 million new cases and 3.2 million deaths estimated in 2020. Despite the... (Review)
Review
Gastrointestinal cancers are a leading cause of cancer morbidity and mortality worldwide with 4.2 million new cases and 3.2 million deaths estimated in 2020. Despite the advances in primary and adjuvant therapies, patients still develop distant metastases and require novel therapies. Mitogen‑activated protein kinase (MAPK) cascades are crucial signaling pathways that regulate many cellular processes, including proliferation, differentiation, apoptosis, stress responses and cancer development. p38 Mitogen Activated Protein Kinases (p38 MAPKs) includes four isoforms: p38α (MAPK14), p38β (MAPK11), p38γ (MAPK12), and p38δ (MAPK13). p38 MAPK was first identified as a stress response protein kinase that phosphorylates different transcriptional factors. Dysregulation of p38 pathways, in particular p38γ, are associated with cancer development, metastasis, autophagy and tumor microenvironment. In this article, we provide an overview of p38 and p38γ with respect to gastrointestinal cancers. Furthermore, targeting p38γ is also discussed as a potential therapy for gastrointestinal cancers.
Topics: Humans; Mitogen-Activated Protein Kinase 11; Mitogen-Activated Protein Kinase 12; Mitogen-Activated Protein Kinase 13; Signal Transduction; Gastrointestinal Neoplasms; p38 Mitogen-Activated Protein Kinases; Tumor Microenvironment
PubMed: 37248432
DOI: 10.1038/s41417-023-00622-1 -
Nature Dec 2020The MAPK/ERK kinase MEK is a shared effector of the frequent cancer drivers KRAS and BRAF that has long been pursued as a drug target in oncology, and more recently in...
The MAPK/ERK kinase MEK is a shared effector of the frequent cancer drivers KRAS and BRAF that has long been pursued as a drug target in oncology, and more recently in immunotherapy and ageing. However, many MEK inhibitors are limited owing to on-target toxicities and drug resistance. Accordingly, a molecular understanding of the structure and function of MEK within physiological complexes could provide a template for the design of safer and more effective therapies. Here we report X-ray crystal structures of MEK bound to the scaffold KSR (kinase suppressor of RAS) with various MEK inhibitors, including the clinical drug trametinib. The structures reveal an unexpected mode of binding in which trametinib directly engages KSR at the MEK interface. In the bound complex, KSR remodels the prototypical allosteric pocket of the MEK inhibitor, thereby affecting binding and kinetics, including the drug-residence time. Moreover, trametinib binds KSR-MEK but disrupts the related RAF-MEK complex through a mechanism that exploits evolutionarily conserved interface residues that distinguish these sub-complexes. On the basis of these insights, we created trametiglue, which limits adaptive resistance to MEK inhibition by enhancing interfacial binding. Our results reveal the plasticity of an interface pocket within MEK sub-complexes and have implications for the design of next-generation drugs that target the RAS pathway.
Topics: Amino Acid Sequence; Animals; Binding Sites; Humans; Mice; Mitogen-Activated Protein Kinase Kinases; Models, Molecular; Protein Binding; Protein Kinase Inhibitors; Protein Kinases; Pyridones; Pyrimidinones; Substrate Specificity; raf Kinases
PubMed: 32927473
DOI: 10.1038/s41586-020-2760-4 -
International Journal of Molecular... Mar 2022Cancer is a leading cause of death worldwide. In many cases, the treatment of the disease is limited due to the metastasis of cells to distant locations of the body... (Review)
Review
Cancer is a leading cause of death worldwide. In many cases, the treatment of the disease is limited due to the metastasis of cells to distant locations of the body through the blood and lymphatic drainage. Most of the anticancer therapeutic options focus mainly on the inhibition of tumor cell growth or the induction of cell death, and do not consider the molecular basis of metastasis. The aim of this work is to provide a comprehensive review focusing on cancer metastasis and the mitogen-activated protein kinase (MAPK) pathway (ERK/JNK/P38 signaling) as a crucial modulator of this process.
Topics: Humans; JNK Mitogen-Activated Protein Kinases; MAP Kinase Signaling System; Mitogen-Activated Protein Kinases; Neoplasms; Phosphorylation; p38 Mitogen-Activated Protein Kinases
PubMed: 35409206
DOI: 10.3390/ijms23073847