A novel c-Met/TRK inhibitor 1D228 efficiently inhibits tumor growth by targeting angiogenesis and tumor cell proliferation

Abstract

Multiple tumors are synergistically promoted by c-Met and TRK, and blocking their cross-signalling pathway may give better effects. In this study, we developed a tyrosine kinase inhibitor 1D228, which exhibited excellent anti-tumor activity by targeting c-Met and TRK. Models in vitro, 1D228 showed a significant better inhibition on cancer cell proliferation and migration than the positive drug Tepotinib. Models in vivo, 1D228 showed robust anti-tumor effect on gastric and liver tumor growth with 94.8% and 93.4% of the TGI, respectively, comparing 67.61% and 63.9% of Tepotinib. Importantly, compared with the combination of Larotrectinib and Tepotinib, 1D228 monotherapy in MKN45 xenograft tumor models showed stronger antitumor activity and lower toxicity. Mechanistic studies showed that 1D228 can largely inhibit the phosphorylation of TRKB and c-Met. Interestingly, both kinases, TRKs and c-Met, have been found to be co-expressed at high levels in patients with gastric cancer through IHC. Furthermore, bioinformatics analysis has revealed that both genes are abnormally co-expressed in multiple types of cancer. Cell cycle analysis found that 1D228 induced G0/G1 arrest by inhibiting cyclin D1. Additionally, vascular endothelial cells also showed a pronounced response to 1D228 due to its expression of TRKB and c-Met. 1D228 suppressed the migration and tube formation of endothelial cells, which are the key functions of tumor angiogenesis. Taken together, compound 1D228 may be a promising candidate for the next generation of c-Met and TRK inhibitors for cancer treatment, and offers a novel potential treatment strategy for cancer patients with abnormal expressions of c-Met or NTRK, or simultaneous of them.