Protein Kinase Inhibitors As Sensitizing Agents For Chemotherapy

Tyrosine Kinase Inhibitors as Sensitizing Agents for Chemotherapy, the fourth volume in the Cancer Sensitizing Agents for Chemotherapy Series, focuses on strategic combination therapies that involve a variety of tyrosine kinase inhibitors working together to overcome multi-drug resistance in cancer cells. The book discusses several tyrosine kinase inhibitors that have been used as sensitizing agents, such as EGFR, BCR-ABL, ALK and BRAF. In each chapter, readers will find comprehensive knowledge on the inhibitor and its action, including its biochemical, genetic, and molecular mechanisms' emphases. This book is a valuable source for oncologists, cancer researchers and those interested in applying new sensitizing agents to their research in clinical practice and in trials. Summarizes the sensitizing role of some tyrosine kinase inhibitors in existing research Brings recent findings in several cancer types, both experimental and clinically, with a particular emphases on underlying biochemical, genetic, and molecular mechanisms Provides an updated and comprehensive knowledge regarding the field of combinational cancer treatment

An expert guide to targeting protein kinases in cancertherapy Research has shown that protein kinases can instigate theformation and spread of cancer when they transmit faulty signalsinside cells. Because of this fact, pharmaceutical scientists havetargeted kinases for intensive study, and have been working todevelop medicinal roadblocks to sever their malignant means ofcommunication. Complete with full-color presentations, Targeting ProteinKinases for Cancer Therapy defines the structural features ofprotein kinases and examines their cellular functions. Combiningkinase biology with chemistry and pharmacology applications, thisbook enlists emerging data to drive the discovery of newcancer-fighting drugs. Valuable information includes: Comprehensive overviews of the major kinase families involved inoncology, integrating protein structure and function, and providingimportant tools to assist pharmaceutical researchers to understandand work in this dynamic area of cancer drug research Focus on small molecule inhibitors as well as other therapeuticmodalities Discussion of kinase inhibitors that have entered clinicaltrials for the treatment of cancer, with an emphasis on moleculesthat have progressed to late stage clinical trials and, in a fewcases, to market Providing a platform for further study, this important workreviews both the successes and challenges of kinase inhibitortherapy, and provides insight into future directions in the waragainst cancer.

Leading researchers, from the Novartis group that pioneered Gleevec/GlivecTM and around the world, comprehensively survey the state of the art in the drug discovery processes (bio- and chemoinformatics, structural biology, profiling, generation of resistance, etc.) aimed at generating PTK inhibitors for the treatment of various diseases, including cancer. Highlights include a discussion of the rationale and the progress made towards generating "selective" low molecular-weight kinase inhibitors; an analysis of the normal function, role in disease, and application of platelet-derived growth factor antagonists; and a summary of the factors involved in successful structure-based drug design. Additional chapters address the advantages and disadvantages of in vivo preclinical models for testing protein kinase inhibitors with antitumor activity and the utility of different methods in the drug discovery and development process for determining "on-target" vs "off-target" effects of kinase inhibitors.

One of the few books to cover all aspects of cyclin-dependent kinases (CDKs), Inhibitors of Cyclin-dependent Kinases as Anti-tumor Agents provides an overview of CDKs as molecular and functional entities, their involvement in different disease processes, and their potential for pharmacological modulation. With contributions from the top international researchers in the field, the book takes a contemporary approach to study the importance of rational drug design and knowledge-based therapeutics in relation to CDKs. The first two sections of the book discuss the integration of cell cycle control pathways, opportunities for targeting, targets of inhibitors, and the evaluation of CDK inhibitors, exploring topics such as the in vivo function of CDKs in normal homeostasisand tumor development and the structural biology of CDKs. The third section examines the design, development, and chemistry of small molecule CDK inhibitors, with discussions ranging from the early-stage discovery of new chemical entities with a capacity to inhibit CDKs to late-stage compounds in clinical development. The final section assesses the current status of CDK inhibitors in clinical trials, the therapeutic deployment challenges of small molecule inhibitors, and the future development of CDK inhibitors as anticancer agents. The field of drug development is at a critical point in terms of understanding the availability, advantages, and drawbacks of CDKs as therapeutic targets for small molecules. Providing the most up-to-date, in-depth coverage available in a single volume, Inhibitors of Cyclin-dependent Kinases as Anti-tumor Agents surveys the success of the agents developed thus far, the possibility of new routes to more selective inhibitors, and the growing appreciation of critical, therapeutic issues.

This book reviews novel approaches developed to reverse tumor cell resistance to chemo/immuno/radio-therapy and the use of various sensitizing agents in combination with various cytotoxics. It also introduces several current approaches developed by established investigators that are aimed at overcoming resistance. This is the first volume to compile studies on tumor cell sensitization. It will prove useful for students, scientists, clinicians and pharmaceutical companies.

Molecular Therapies of Cancer comprehensively covers the molecular mechanisms of anti-cancer drug actions in a comparably systematic fashion. While there is currently available a great deal of literature on anti-cancer drugs, books on the subject are often concoctions of invited review articles superficially connected to one another. There is a lack of comprehensive and systematic text on the topic of molecular therapies in cancer. A further deficit in the relevant literature is a progressive sub-specialization that typically limits textbooks on cancer drugs to cover either pharmacology or medicinal chemistry or signal transduction, rather than explaining molecular drug actions across all those areas; Molecular Therapies of Cancer fills this void. The book is divided into five sections: 1. Molecular Targeting of Cancer Cells; 2. Emerging and Alternative Treatment Modalities; 3. Molecular Targeting of Tumor-Host Interactions; 4. Anti-Cancer Drug Pharmacokinetics; and 5. Supportive Therapies.

Heat shock proteins are emerging as important molecules in the development of cancer and as key targets in cancer therapy. These proteins enhance the growth of cancer cells and protect tumors from treatments such as drugs or surgery. However, new drugs have recently been developed particularly those targeting heat shock protein 90. As heat shock protein 90 functions to stabilize many of the oncogenes and growth promoting proteins in cancer cells, such drugs have broad specificity in many types of cancer cell and offer the possibility of evading the development of resistance through point mutation or use of compensatory pathways. Heat shock proteins have a further property that makes them tempting targets in cancer immunotherapy. These proteins have the ability to induce an inflammatory response when released in tumors and to carry tumor antigens to antigen presenting cells. They have thus become important components of anticancer vaccines. Overall, heat shock proteins are important new targets in molecular cancer therapy and can be approached in a number of contrasting approaches to therapy.

Chemotherapy is one of the major treatment options for cancer patients; however, the efficacy of chemotherapeutic management of cancer is severely limited by multidrug resistance, in that cancer cells become simultaneously resistant to many structurally and mechanistically unrelated drugs. In the past three decades, a number of mechanisms by which cancer cells acquire multidrug resistance have been discovered. In addition, the development of agents or strategies to overcome resistance has been the subject of intense study. This book contains comprehensive and up-to-date reviews of multidrug resistance mechanisms, from over-expression of ATP-binding cassette drug transporters such as P-glycoprotein, multidrug resistance-associated proteins, and breast cancer resistance p- tein to the drug ratio-dependent antagonism and the paradigm of cancer stem cells. The book also includes strategies to overcome multidrug resistance, from the development of compounds that inhibit drug transporter function to the modulation of transporter expression. In addition, this book contains techniques for the detection and imaging of drug transporters, methods for the investigation of drug resistance in animal models, and strategies to evaluate the efficacy of resistance reversal agents. The book intends to provide a state-of-the-art collection of reviews and methods for both basic and clinician investigators who are interested in cancer multidrug resistance mechanisms and reversal strategies. Tianjin, China Jun Zhou v Contents Preface. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . v Contributors. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . ix 1 Multidrug Resistance in Cancer . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1 Bruce C. Baguley 2 Multidrug Resistance in Oncology and Beyond: From Imaging of Drug Efflux Pumps to Cellular Drug Targets . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .