New Anticancer Theobromine Derivative Targeting EGFR<sup>WT</sup> and EGFR<sup>T790M</sup>: Design, Semi-Synthesis, In Silico, and In Vitro Anticancer Studies

oleh: Eslam B. Elkaeed, Reda G. Yousef, Hazem Elkady, Aisha A. Alsfouk, Dalal Z. Husein, Ibrahim M. Ibrahim, Ahmed M. Metwaly, Ibrahim H. Eissa

Format: Article
Diterbitkan: MDPI AG 2022-09-01

Deskripsi

Based on the pharmacophoric features of EGFR inhibitors, a new semisynthetic theobromine-derived compound was designed to interact with the catalytic pocket of EGFR. Molecular docking against wild (EGFR<sup>WT</sup>; PDB: 4HJO) and mutant (EGFR<sup>T790M</sup>; PDB: 3W2O) types of EGFR-TK indicated that the designed theobromine derivative had the potential to bind to that pocket as an antiangiogenic inhibitor. The MD and MM-GBSA experiments identified the exact binding with optimum energy and dynamics. Additionally, the DFT calculations studied electrostatic potential, stability, and total electron density of the designed theobromine derivative. Both in silico ADMET and toxicity analyses demonstrated its general likeness and safety. We synthesized the designed theobromine derivative (compound <b>XI</b>) which showed an IC<sub>50</sub> value of 17.23 nM for EGFR inhibition besides IC<sub>50</sub> values of 21.99 and 22.02 µM for its cytotoxicity against A549 and HCT-116 cell lines, respectively. Interestingly, compound <b>XI</b> expressed a weak cytotoxic potential against the healthy W138 cell line (IC<sub>50</sub> = 49.44 µM, 1.6 times safer than erlotinib), exhibiting the high selectivity index of 2.2. Compound <b>XI</b> arrested the growth of A549 at the G2/M stage and increased the incidence of apoptosis.