A Constitutive EGFR Kinase Dimer to Study Inhibitor Pharmacology

Lung cancer is commonly caused by activating mutations in the epidermal growth factor receptor (EGFR). Allosteric kinase inhibitors are unaffected by common ATP-site resistance mutations and represent a promising therapeutic strategy for targeting drug-resistant EGFR variants. However, allosteric inhibitors are antagonized by kinase dimerization, and understanding this phenomenon has been limited to cellular experiments. To facilitate the study of allosteric inhibitor pharmacology, we designed and purified a constitutive EGFR kinase dimer harboring the clinically relevant L858R/T790M mutations. Kinetic characterization revealed that the EGFR kinase dimer is more active than monomeric EGFR(L858R/T790M) kinase and has the same K_m,ATP. Biochemical profiling of a large panel of ATP-competitive and allosteric EGFR inhibitors showed that allosteric inhibitor potency decreased by >500-fold in the kinase dimer compared with monomer, yielding IC₅₀ values that correlate well with Ba/F3 cellular potencies. Thus, this readily purifiable constitutive asymmetric EGFR kinase dimer represents an attractive tool for biochemical evaluation of EGFR inhibitor pharmacology, in particular for allosteric inhibitors.

SIGNIFICANCE STATEMENT

Drugs targeting epidermal growth factor receptor (EGFR) kinase are commonly used to treat lung cancers but are affected by receptor dimerization. Here, we describe a locked kinase dimer that can be used to study EGFR inhibitor pharmacology.