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Imatinib (Gleevec) is currently the frontline therapy for chronic myeloid leukemia (CML), a disease characterized by the presence of a constitutively activated chimeric tyrosine kinase protein Bcr-AbI. However, drug resistance often occurs at later stages of the disease, principally because of the occurrence of mutations in the kinase domain. Second generation Bcr-AbI inhibitors, such as dasatinib and nilotinib are capable of inhibiting many imatinib-resistant forms of the kinase but not the form in which threonine is mutated to isoleucine at the gatekeeper position (T315I). In this study, we present the crystal structure of the kinase domain of the c-AbI T315I mutant, as well as the wild-type form, in complex with a pyrrolopyridine inhibitor, PPY-A. The side chain of Ile315 is accommodated in the AbI T315I mutant structure without large conformational changes proximal to the site of mutation. In contrast to other inhibitors, such as imatinib and dasatinib, PPY-A does not occupy the hydrophobic pocket behind the gatekeeper residue. This binding mode, coupled with augmented contacts with the glycine-rich loop, appears to be critical for its ability to override the T315I mutation. The data presented here may provide structural guidance for the design of clinically useful inhibitors of Bcr-AbI T315I.

The tyrosine kinase pp60src (Src) is the prototypical member of a family of proteins that participate in a broad array of cellular signal transduction processes, including cell growth, differentiation, survival, adhesion, and migration. Abnormal Src family kinase (SFK) signaling has been linked to several disease states, including osteoporosis and cancer metastases. Src has thus emerged as a molecular target for the discovery of small-molecule inhibitors that regulate Src kinase activity by binding to the ATP pocket within the catalytic domain. Here, we present crystal structures of the kinase domain of Src in complex with two purine-based inhibitors: AP23451, a small-molecule inhibitor designed to inhibit Src-dependent bone resorption, and AP23464, a small-molecule inhibitor designed to inhibit the Src-dependent metastatic spread of cancer. In each case, a trisubstituted purine template core was elaborated using structure-based drug design to yield a potent Src kinase inhibitor. These structures represent early examples of high affinity purine-based Src family kinase-inhibitor complexes, and they provide a detailed view of the specific protein-ligand interactions that lead to potent inhibition of Src. In particular, the 3-hydroxyphenethyl N9 substituent of AP23464 forms unique interactions with the protein that are critical to the picomolar affinity of this compound for Src. The comparison of these new structures with two relevant kinase-inhibitor complexes provides a structural basis for the observed kinase inhibitory selectivity. Further comparisons reveal a concerted induced-fit movement between the N- and C-terminal lobes of the kinase that correlates with the affinity of the ligand. Binding of the most potent inhibitor, AP23464, results in the largest induced-fit movement, which can be directly linked to interactions of the hydrophenethyl N9 substituent with a region at the interface between the two lobes. A less pronounced induced-fit movement is also observed in the Src-AP23451 complex. These new structures illustrate how the combination of structural, computational, and medicinal chemistry can be used to rationalize the process of developing high affinity, selective tyrosine kinase inhibitors as potential therapeutic agents.