TEAD Inhibitors Sensitize KRAS Inhibitors via Dual Cell Cycle Arrest in KRAS-Mutant NSCLC.

KRAS is one of the most common mutations detected in non-small cell lung cancer (NSCLC) patients, and it is a marker of poor prognosis. The first FDA-approved KRAS inhibitors, sotorasib and adagrasib, have been an enormous breakthrough for patients with KRAS mutant NSCLC; however, resistance to therapy is emerging. The transcriptional coactivators YAP1/TAZ and the family of transcription factors TEAD1-4 are the downstream effectors of the Hippo pathway and regulate essential cellular processes such as cell proliferation and cell survival.

YAP1 is essential for malignant mesothelioma tumor maintenance.

Malignant pleural mesothelioma, a tumor arising from the membrane covering the lungs and the inner side of the ribs, is a cancer in which genetic alterations of genes encoding proteins that act on or are part of the Hippo-YAP1 signaling pathway are frequent. Dysfunctional Hippo signaling may result in aberrant activation of the transcriptional coactivator protein YAP1, which binds to and activates transcription factors of the TEAD family. Recent studies have associated elevated YAP1 protein activity with a poor prognosis of malignant mesothelioma and its resistance to current therapies, but its role in tumor maintenance is unclear.

Discovery and Pharmacokinetic and Pharmacological Properties of the Potent and Selective MET Kinase Inhibitor 1-{6-[6-(4-Fluorophenyl)-[1,2,4]triazolo[4,3-b]pyridazin-3-ylsulfanyl]benzothiazol-2-yl}-3-(2-morpholin-4-ylethyl)urea (SAR125844).

The HGF/MET pathway is frequently activated in a variety of cancer types. Several selective small molecule inhibitors of the MET kinase are currently in clinical evaluation, in particular for NSCLC, liver, and gastric cancer patients. We report herein the discovery of a series of triazolopyridazines that are selective inhibitors of wild-type (WT) MET kinase and several clinically relevant mutants.

A Vulnerability of a Subset of Colon Cancers with Potential Clinical Utility.

BRAF(V600E) mutant colon cancers (CCs) have a characteristic gene expression signature that is also found in some tumors lacking this mutation. Collectively, they are referred to as "BRAF-like" tumors and represent some 20% of CCs. We used a shRNA-based genetic screen focused on genes upregulated in BRAF(V600E) CCs to identify vulnerabilities of this tumor subtype that might be exploited therapeutically.

Production of the Bengamide Class of Marine Natural Products in Myxobacteria: Biosynthesis and Structure-Activity Relationships.

The bengamides, sponge-derived natural products that have been characterized as inhibitors of methionine aminopeptidases (MetAPs), have been intensively investigated as anticancer compounds. We embarked on a multidisciplinary project to supply bengamides by fermentation of the terrestrial myxobacterium M. virescens, decipher their biosynthesis, and optimize their properties as drug leads.

The selective intravenous inhibitor of the MET tyrosine kinase SAR125844 inhibits tumor growth in MET-amplified cancer.

Activation of the MET/HGF pathway is common in human cancer and is thought to promote tumor initiation, metastasis, angiogenesis, and resistance to diverse therapies. We report here the pharmacologic characterization of the triazolopyridazine derivative SAR125844, a potent and highly selective inhibitor of the MET receptor tyrosine kinase (RTK), for intravenous administration. SAR125844 displayed nanomolar activity against the wild-type kinase (IC50 value of 4.

Preclinical antitumor activity of cabazitaxel, a semisynthetic taxane active in taxane-resistant tumors.

Purpose: Taxanes are important chemotherapeutic agents with proven efficacy in human cancers, but their use is limited by resistance development. We report here the preclinical characteristics of cabazitaxel (XRP6258), a semisynthetic taxane developed to overcome taxane resistance.

Experimental Design: Cabazitaxel effects on purified tubulin and on taxane-sensitive or chemotherapy-resistant tumor cells were evaluated in vitro.

Characterization of a large panel of patient-derived tumor xenografts representing the clinical heterogeneity of human colorectal cancer.

Purpose: Patient-derived xenograft models are considered to represent the heterogeneity of human cancers and advanced preclinical models. Our consortium joins efforts to extensively develop and characterize a new collection of patient-derived colorectal cancer (CRC) models.

Experimental Design: From the 85 unsupervised surgical colorectal samples collection, 54 tumors were successfully xenografted in immunodeficient mice and rats, representing 35 primary tumors, 5 peritoneal carcinoses and 14 metastases.

In vivo treatment with CPT-11 leads to differentiation of neuroblastoma xenografts and topoisomerase I alterations.

Topoisomerase I inhibitors, such as CPT-11, are potent anticancer drugs against neuroblastoma (NB). Differentiating agents, such as retinoids, improve the survival of children with metastatic NB. To characterize the biological effects associated with exposure to CPT-11 in vivo, athymic mice bearing a human NB xenograft, named IGR-NB8 and characterized as an immature NB with poor prognostic markers, were treated with CPT-11.