title: Targeting EGFR and HER-2 receptor tyrosine kinases for cancer drug discovery and development.
abstract: Conventional anticancer therapy using cytotoxic drugs lacks selectivity and is prone to toxicity and drug resistance. Anticancer therapies targeting aberrant growth factor receptor signaling are gaining interest. The erbB receptor family belongs to the type I, the receptor tyrosine kinases class, and comprises EGFR, HER-2, HER-3, and HER-4. It has been targeted for solid tumor therapy, including breast, ovarian, colon, head-and-neck, and non-small-cell lung cancers. This review summarizes structural aspects of this class of growth factor receptors, their oncogenic expression, and various pharmacological interventions including biological products and small molecules that inhibit these enzymes. We have also discussed various mutations that occur in EGFR and their consequences on anticancer therapy.
authors.affiliation: Department of Pharmaceutical Sciences, College of Pharmacy, University of Tennessee Health Science Center, Memphis, Tennessee 38163, USA.
authors.forename: Shantaram
authors.initials: S
authors.lastname: Kamath
authors.forename: John K
authors.initials: JK
authors.lastname: Buolamwini
mesh_terms: D000818:Animals; D000970:Antineoplastic Agents / Q000138:chemical synthesis* / Q000627:therapeutic use*; D015195:Drug Design; D066246:ErbB Receptors / Q000378:metabolism*; D006801:Humans; D009369:Neoplasms / Q000188:drug therapy* / Q000201:enzymology* / Q000473:pathology; D018719:Erb-b2 Receptor Tyrosine Kinases / Q000378:metabolism*
chemical_list: D000970:Antineoplastic Agents; D066246:ErbB Receptors; D018719:Erb-b2 Receptor Tyrosine Kinases