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Fuentes‐Antrás J, Bedard PL, Cescon DW. Seize the engine: Emerging cell cycle targets in breast cancer. Clin Transl Med 2024; 14:e1544. [PMID: 38264947 PMCID: PMC10807317 DOI: 10.1002/ctm2.1544] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 10/09/2023] [Revised: 12/10/2023] [Accepted: 12/31/2023] [Indexed: 01/25/2024] Open
Abstract
Breast cancer arises from a series of molecular alterations that disrupt cell cycle checkpoints, leading to aberrant cell proliferation and genomic instability. Targeted pharmacological inhibition of cell cycle regulators has long been considered a promising anti-cancer strategy. Initial attempts to drug critical cell cycle drivers were hampered by poor selectivity, modest efficacy and haematological toxicity. Advances in our understanding of the molecular basis of cell cycle disruption and the mechanisms of resistance to CDK4/6 inhibitors have reignited interest in blocking specific components of the cell cycle machinery, such as CDK2, CDK4, CDK7, PLK4, WEE1, PKMYT1, AURKA and TTK. These targets play critical roles in regulating quiescence, DNA replication and chromosome segregation. Extensive preclinical data support their potential to overcome CDK4/6 inhibitor resistance, induce synthetic lethality or sensitise tumours to immune checkpoint inhibitors. This review provides a biological and drug development perspective on emerging cell cycle targets and novel inhibitors, many of which exhibit favourable safety profiles and promising activity in clinical trials.
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Affiliation(s)
- Jesús Fuentes‐Antrás
- Division of Medical Oncology and HematologyDepartment of MedicinePrincess Margaret Cancer CentreUniversity Health NetworkUniversity of TorontoTorontoOntarioCanada
- NEXT OncologyHospital Universitario QuironSalud MadridMadridSpain
| | - Philippe L. Bedard
- Division of Medical Oncology and HematologyDepartment of MedicinePrincess Margaret Cancer CentreUniversity Health NetworkUniversity of TorontoTorontoOntarioCanada
| | - David W. Cescon
- Division of Medical Oncology and HematologyDepartment of MedicinePrincess Margaret Cancer CentreUniversity Health NetworkUniversity of TorontoTorontoOntarioCanada
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Miura A, Sootome H, Fujita N, Suzuki T, Fukushima H, Mizuarai S, Masuko N, Ito K, Hashimoto A, Uto Y, Sugimoto T, Takahashi H, Mitsuya M, Hirai H. TAS-119, a novel selective Aurora A and TRK inhibitor, exhibits antitumor efficacy in preclinical models with deregulated activation of the Myc, β-Catenin, and TRK pathways. Invest New Drugs 2021; 39:724-735. [PMID: 33409897 DOI: 10.1007/s10637-020-01019-9] [Citation(s) in RCA: 4] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 09/04/2020] [Accepted: 10/08/2020] [Indexed: 12/14/2022]
Abstract
Aurora kinase A, a mitotic kinase that is overexpressed in various cancers, is a promising cancer drug target. Here, we performed preclinical characterization of TAS-119, a novel, orally active, and highly selective inhibitor of Aurora A. TAS-119 showed strong inhibitory effect against Aurora A, with an IC50 value of 1.04 nmol/L. The compound was highly selective for Aurora A compared with 301 other protein kinases, including Aurora kinase B. TAS-119 induced the inhibition of Aurora A and accumulation of mitotic cells in vitro and in vivo. It suppressed the growth of various cancer cell lines harboring MYC family amplification and CTNNB1 mutation in vitro. In a xenograft model of human lung cancer cells harboring MYC amplification and CTNNB1 mutation, TAS-119 showed a strong antitumor activity at well-tolerated doses. TAS-119 induced N-Myc degradation and inhibited downstream transcriptional targets in MYCN-amplified neuroblastoma cell lines. It also demonstrated inhibitory effect against tropomyosin receptor kinase (TRK)A, TRKB, and TRKC, with an IC50 value of 1.46, 1.53, and 1.47 nmol/L, respectively. TAS-119 inhibited TRK-fusion protein activity and exhibited robust growth inhibition of tumor cells via a deregulated TRK pathway in vitro and in vivo. Our study indicates the potential of TAS-119 as an anticancer drug, especially for patients harboring MYC amplification, CTNNB1 mutation, and NTRK fusion.
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Affiliation(s)
- Akihiro Miura
- Discovery and Preclinical Research Division, Taiho Pharmaceutical Co., Ltd, 3 Okubo, Tsukuba, Ibaraki, 300-2611, Japan
- Graduate School of Technology, Industrial and Social Sciences, Tokushima University, 770-8506, 2-1 Minamijosanjima-cho, Tokushima, Japan
| | - Hiroshi Sootome
- Discovery and Preclinical Research Division, Taiho Pharmaceutical Co., Ltd, 3 Okubo, Tsukuba, Ibaraki, 300-2611, Japan
| | - Naoya Fujita
- Discovery and Preclinical Research Division, Taiho Pharmaceutical Co., Ltd, 3 Okubo, Tsukuba, Ibaraki, 300-2611, Japan
| | - Takamasa Suzuki
- Discovery and Preclinical Research Division, Taiho Pharmaceutical Co., Ltd, 3 Okubo, Tsukuba, Ibaraki, 300-2611, Japan
| | - Hiroto Fukushima
- Discovery and Preclinical Research Division, Taiho Pharmaceutical Co., Ltd, 3 Okubo, Tsukuba, Ibaraki, 300-2611, Japan
| | - Shinji Mizuarai
- Discovery and Preclinical Research Division, Taiho Pharmaceutical Co., Ltd, 3 Okubo, Tsukuba, Ibaraki, 300-2611, Japan
| | - Norio Masuko
- Discovery and Preclinical Research Division, Taiho Pharmaceutical Co., Ltd, 3 Okubo, Tsukuba, Ibaraki, 300-2611, Japan
| | - Kimihiro Ito
- Discovery and Preclinical Research Division, Taiho Pharmaceutical Co., Ltd, 3 Okubo, Tsukuba, Ibaraki, 300-2611, Japan
| | - Akihiro Hashimoto
- Discovery and Preclinical Research Division, Taiho Pharmaceutical Co., Ltd, 3 Okubo, Tsukuba, Ibaraki, 300-2611, Japan
| | - Yoshihiro Uto
- Graduate School of Technology, Industrial and Social Sciences, Tokushima University, 770-8506, 2-1 Minamijosanjima-cho, Tokushima, Japan
| | - Tetsuya Sugimoto
- Discovery and Preclinical Research Division, Taiho Pharmaceutical Co., Ltd, 3 Okubo, Tsukuba, Ibaraki, 300-2611, Japan
| | - Hidekazu Takahashi
- Discovery and Preclinical Research Division, Taiho Pharmaceutical Co., Ltd, 3 Okubo, Tsukuba, Ibaraki, 300-2611, Japan
| | - Morihiro Mitsuya
- Discovery and Preclinical Research Division, Taiho Pharmaceutical Co., Ltd, 3 Okubo, Tsukuba, Ibaraki, 300-2611, Japan
| | - Hiroshi Hirai
- Discovery and Preclinical Research Division, Taiho Pharmaceutical Co., Ltd, 3 Okubo, Tsukuba, Ibaraki, 300-2611, Japan.
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Sootome H, Miura A, Masuko N, Suzuki T, Uto Y, Hirai H. Aurora A Inhibitor TAS-119 Enhances Antitumor Efficacy of Taxanes In Vitro and In Vivo: Preclinical Studies as Guidance for Clinical Development and Trial Design. Mol Cancer Ther 2020; 19:1981-1991. [PMID: 32788206 DOI: 10.1158/1535-7163.mct-20-0036] [Citation(s) in RCA: 5] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 01/21/2020] [Revised: 06/04/2020] [Accepted: 07/30/2020] [Indexed: 11/16/2022]
Abstract
TAS-119 is a novel orally active, selective inhibitor of Aurora kinase A identified as a clinical candidate for efficacy testing in combination with taxanes. In vitro, TAS-119 enhanced cell growth inhibition of paclitaxel in multiple human cancer cell lines derived from various tissues, including paclitaxel-resistant cell lines. Interestingly, TAS-119 did not enhance paclitaxel antitumor activity in normal lung diploid fibroblast cell lines WI-38 and MRC5. In vivo, TAS-119 enhanced the antitumor efficacy of paclitaxel and docetaxel in multiple models at doses inhibitory to Aurora A in tumors. Moreover, the drug combination was well tolerated, and TAS-119 did not exaggerate clinically documented side effects of taxanes, neutropenia and neurotoxicity, in rats. The same TAS-119 concentration enhanced the cell growth inhibitory activity of three clinically approved taxanes, paclitaxel, docetaxel, and cabazitaxel. The degree of enhancement calculated as fold of change of the IC50 value for each taxane was almost the same among the three taxanes. We conducted in vitro and in vivo experiments to develop an optimized combination therapy regimen for TAS-119 with paclitaxel/docetaxel. Using in vitro and in vivo models, we tested the drug administration order for TAS-119 combined with paclitaxel and the TAS-119 treatment duration. The best regimen in preclinical models was combining paclitaxel or docetaxel treatment with 4 days of TAS-119 dosing, which was initiated on the same day as the paclitaxel or docetaxel administration or one day later. This information provided guidance for the design of a clinical trial of TAS-119 and paclitaxel or docetaxel combination.
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Affiliation(s)
- Hiroshi Sootome
- Discovery and Preclinical Research Division, Taiho Pharmaceutical Co., Ltd, Tsukuba, Japan
| | - Akihiro Miura
- Discovery and Preclinical Research Division, Taiho Pharmaceutical Co., Ltd, Tsukuba, Japan.,Graduate School of Technology, Industrial and Social Sciences, Tokushima University, Tokushima, Japan
| | - Norio Masuko
- Discovery and Preclinical Research Division, Taiho Pharmaceutical Co., Ltd, Tsukuba, Japan
| | - Takamasa Suzuki
- Discovery and Preclinical Research Division, Taiho Pharmaceutical Co., Ltd, Tsukuba, Japan
| | - Yoshihiro Uto
- Graduate School of Technology, Industrial and Social Sciences, Tokushima University, Tokushima, Japan
| | - Hiroshi Hirai
- Discovery and Preclinical Research Division, Taiho Pharmaceutical Co., Ltd, Tsukuba, Japan.
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