Encoding BRAF inhibitor functions in protein degraders

RSC Med Chem. 2022 May 5;13(6):731-736. doi: 10.1039/d2md00064d. eCollection 2022 Jun 22.

Abstract

Various BRAF kinase inhibitors were developed to treat cancers carrying the BRAFV600E mutation. First-generation BRAF inhibitors could lead to paradoxical activation of the MAPK pathway, limiting their clinical usefulness. Here, we show the development of two series of BRAFV600E-targeting PROTACs and demonstrate that the exchange of the inhibitor scaffold from vemurafenib to paradox-breaker ligands resulted in BRAFV600E degraders that did not cause paradoxical ERK activation.