Repurposing of FDA approved kinase inhibitor bosutinib for mitigation of radiation induced damage via inhibition of JNK pathway.

Radiotherapy is a common modality for cancer treatment. However, it is often associated with normal tissue toxicity in 20-80% of the patients. Radioprotectors can improve the outcome of radiotherapy by selectively protecting normal cells against radiation toxicity. In the present study, compound libraries containing 54 kinase inhibitors and 80 FDA-approved drugs were screened for radioprotection of lymphocytes using high throughput cell analysis. A second-generation FDA-approved kinase inhibitor, bosutinib, was identified as a potential radioprotector for normal cells. The radioprotective efficacy of bosutinib was evinced from a reduction in radiation induced DNA damage, caspase-3 activation, DNA fragmentation and apoptosis. Oral administration of bosutinib protected mice against whole body irradiation (WBI) induced morbidity and mortality. Bosutinib also reduced radiation induced bone-marrow aplasia and hematopoietic damage in mice exposed to 4 Gy and 6 Gy dose of WBI. Mechanistic studies revealed that the radioprotective action of bosutinib involved interaction with cellular thiols and modulation of JNK pathway. The addition of glutathione and N-acetyl cysteine significantly reduced the radioprotective efficacy of bosutinib. Moreover, bosutinib did not protect cancer cells against radiation induced toxicity. On the contrary, bosutinib per se exhibited anticancer activity against human cancer cell lines. The results highlight possible use of bosutinib as a repurposable radioprotective agent for mitigation of radiation toxicity in cancer patients undergoing radiotherapy.