The 4-anilinoquinazoline class of inhibitors of the erbB family of receptor tyrosine kinases.

The erbB family of receptor tyrosine kinase enzymes, and particularly EGFR and HER2/neu, have become important targets for potential anticancer drugs. The substrate protein binding site theoretically is the more attractive intracellular target on these enzymes, possessing lower homology than the ATP site between different receptor kinases. However, a major breakthrough in this field was the discovery that 4-anilinoquinazolines are potent and selective inhibitors, despite binding at the ATP site. The very tight structure-activity relationships shown by these compounds suggested a clearly-defined binding mode, where the quinazoline ring binds in the adenine pocket and the anilino ring binds in an adjacent, unique lipophilic pocket. A unique cysteine (Cys-773) adjacent to the quinazoline binding site has prompted the development of irreversible inhibitors that target this residue. Three 4-anilinoquinazoline analogues (two reversible and one irreversible inhibitor) have been evaluated clinically as anticancer drugs. Data from the most advanced, the reversible inhibitor Iressa, suggest that this class of compounds may be of value in cancer chemotherapy.