Discovery of potent and selective inhibitors of ataxia telangiectasia mutated and Rad3 related (ATR) protein kinase as potential anticancer agents

JD Charrier, SJ Durrant, JMC Golec… - Journal of medicinal …, 2011 - ACS Publications
JD Charrier, SJ Durrant, JMC Golec, DP Kay, RMA Knegtel, S MacCormick, M Mortimore…
Journal of medicinal chemistry, 2011ACS Publications
DNA-damaging agents are among the most frequently used anticancer drugs. However,
they provide only modest benefit in most cancers. This may be attributed to a genome
maintenance network, the DNA damage response (DDR), that recognizes and repairs
damaged DNA. ATR is a major regulator of the DDR and an attractive anticancer target.
Herein, we describe the discovery of a series of aminopyrazines with potent and selective
ATR inhibition. Compound 45 inhibits ATR with a K i of 6 nM, shows> 600-fold selectivity …
DNA-damaging agents are among the most frequently used anticancer drugs. However, they provide only modest benefit in most cancers. This may be attributed to a genome maintenance network, the DNA damage response (DDR), that recognizes and repairs damaged DNA. ATR is a major regulator of the DDR and an attractive anticancer target. Herein, we describe the discovery of a series of aminopyrazines with potent and selective ATR inhibition. Compound 45 inhibits ATR with a Ki of 6 nM, shows >600-fold selectivity over related kinases ATM or DNA-PK, and blocks ATR signaling in cells with an IC50 of 0.42 μM. Using this compound, we show that ATR inhibition markedly enhances death induced by DNA-damaging agents in certain cancers but not normal cells. This differential response between cancer and normal cells highlights the great potential for ATR inhibition as a novel mechanism to dramatically increase the efficacy of many established drugs and ionizing radiation.
ACS Publications