Chapter 5: Novel Allosteric MEK Inhibitor

http://www.jci.org/articles/view/24808/figure/3

This article relates to cancer cell oncogene as the RAS–RAF–MEK–ERK signalling pathway is hyperactivated in a high rate of tumors, most oftenly inferable from initiating changes of the NF1, RAS and BRAF genes. Research indicates that the utilization of compounds focusing on parts of ERK signaling like RAF or MEK inhibitors has prompted to a substantial change in clinical result in metastatic melanoma and has demonstrated promising clinical activity in extra tumor sorts.
The hypothesis being tested is if the MEK inhibitor, CH5126766 (RO5126766), has the one of a kind property of hindering RAF kinase. Binding of CH5126766 causes MEK to embrace a compliance in which it can’t be phosphorylated by and discharged from RAF. This causes the formation of a steady MEK/RAF complex and restraint of RAF kinase. CH5126766 hinders ERK flagging yield more viably than a standard MEK inhibitor that incites MEK phosphorylation and has strong antitumor movement also. These outcomes recommend that alleviation of RAF input limits pathway hindrance by standard MEK inhibitors.
A scope of cell-surface molecules initiates RAS, a group of GTPases that go about as molecular switches, turning on the downstream RAF protein kinases.The prevailing substrates of RAF kinases are the MAPK/ERK kinases, MEK1 and MEK2. MEK kinases seem to have one and the only primary substrate, ERK. This chain of proteins, from RAS to ERK, conveys signals from cell-surface receptors to the DNA. ERK produces broad changes in quality expression intervened by interpretation figures that control cell cycle movement, separation, protein synthesis, digestion system, cell survival, cell relocation, and attack and senescence.
This study greatly contributes to the knowledge I have for cancer cell oncogene. The part of the ERK signalling
pathway in cancer is seen as more prominent in tumors in which changes in the receptor tyrosine kinases RAS, BRAF, CRAF, MEK1 or MEK2 drive development component autonomous ERK1 and ERK2 enactment and thus improper cell multiplication and survival. New medications that restrain RAF or MEK1 and MEK2 have as of late been affirmed or are presently experiencing late-arrange clinical assessment.
Since CH5126766 adequately restrained ERK phosphorylation in vivo in RAS-mutant xenografts and was a more strong inhibitor of ERK yield and tumor development than PD0325901, does this imply that anticipating actuation of pMEK records for the more prominent viability of this medication?

Reference
Ishii, N., Harada, N., Joseph, E. W., Ohara, K., Miura, T., Sakamoto, H., … & Sakai, T. (2013). Enhanced inhibition of ERK signaling by a novel allosteric MEK inhibitor, CH5126766, that suppresses feedback reactivation of RAF activity. Cancer research, 73(13), 4050-4060.

3 thoughts on “Chapter 5: Novel Allosteric MEK Inhibitor

  1. Hey! Great post on another common cancer oncogene. Is it possible that if you were to inhibit RAF that MEK would not be phosphorylated and therefore ERK won’t be phosphorylated either.

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  2. Hey, awesome break down on the pathway. You’ve made it much easier to understand for me! It’s good to see that you too, understand and know what you are talking about and reading!

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  3. Nice post on this particular pathway! Its cool to see that they are trying to use MEK to inhibit the RAF kinases by not allowing phosphorylation. So would this be used as to slow the progression of the tumor while other medications attempted to kill the tumor cells that are already present? Or would this theoretically make the tumor stop growing and eventually die?

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