Cited by 14Protein Kinase Regulation and GTPase SignalingComputational Drug Discovery MethodsProtein Degradation and Inhibitors

Therapeutic Targeting the Allosteric Cysteinome of RAS and Kinase Families

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Li, Lianbo, Meyer, Cynthia, Zhou, Zhi-Wei, Elmezayen, Ammar, Westover, Kenneth·2022·Journal of Molecular Biology

Abstract

Allosteric mechanisms are pervasive in nature, but human-designed allosteric perturbagens are rare. The history of KRAS G12C inhibitor development suggests that covalent chemistry may be a key to expanding the armamentarium of allosteric inhibitors. In that effort, irreversible targeting of a cysteine converted a non-deal allosteric binding pocket and low affinity ligands into a tractable drugging strategy. Here we examine the feasibility of expanding this approach to other allosteric pockets of RAS and kinase family members, given that both protein families are regulators of vital cellular processes that are often dysregulated in cancer and other human diseases. Moreover, these heavily studied families are the subject of numerous drug development campaigns that have resulted, sometimes serendipitously, in the discovery of allosteric inhibitors. We consequently conducted a comprehensive search for cysteines, a commonly targeted amino acid for covalent drugs, using AlphaFold-generated structures of those families. This new analysis presents potential opportunities for allosteric targeting of validated and understudied drug targets, with an emphasis on cancer therapy.

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  • Allosteric drugs have higher specificity and lower toxicity due to targeting nonconserved allosteric sites.

    “Due to its higher specificity and consequently lower toxicity, which results from targeting nonconserved allosteric sites, allostery also increasingly features in allosteric drugs.”

    From AlphaFold, Artificial Intelligence (AI), and Allostery (2022) · cites this paper as [125]

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Authors
Li, L., Meyer, C., Zhou, Z.-W., Elmezayen, A., & Westover, K.
Affiliations
The University of Texas Southwestern Medical Center (US)
Corresponding author
Westover, Kenneth
Venue
Journal of Molecular Biology
Publisher
Elsevier BV
Published
2022-09
Volume
434
Issue
17
Pages
167626
ISSN
0022-2836 (ISSN-L)
OpenAlex
W4280544989
Cited by
14
References
145
Citations by year
2026: 1 · 2025: 4 · 2024: 6 · 2022: 3
FWCI
0.34
Type
journal article
Language
en
Open access
Locations
  • Journal of Molecular Biology (acceptedVersion)
  • PubMed (publishedVersion)
  • PubMed Central (acceptedVersion)
Funders
  • Astellas Pharma US
  • Cancer Prevention and Research Institute of Texas (RP220145)
  • National Institutes of Health
  • Revolution Medicines
  • American Cancer Society (RSG-18-039-01)
  • Welch Foundation (I1829)
  • National Cancer Institute (R01 CA244341, P30CA142543)
Topics
  • Life Sciences › Biochemistry, Genetics and Molecular Biology › Molecular Biology › Protein Kinase Regulation and GTPase Signaling
  • Physical Sciences › Computer Science › Computational Theory and Mathematics › Computational Drug Discovery Methods
  • Life Sciences › Biochemistry, Genetics and Molecular Biology › Molecular Biology › Protein Degradation and Inhibitors
Keywords
allosteric inhibitors, Ras, kinases, covalent inhibitors, irreversible inhibition, AlphaFold structures, cancer therapy, drug target identification
MeSH terms
Antineoplastic Agents, Cysteine, Humans, Neoplasms, Protein Kinases, ras Proteins, Protein Kinase Inhibitors, Molecular Targeted Therapy

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