Benzimidazole-based protein kinase inhibitors: Current perspectives in targeted cancer therapy

Area of Science:

• Medicinal Chemistry
• Oncology
• Drug Discovery

Background:

• Targeted cancer therapy offers improved selectivity and reduced toxicity compared to traditional treatments.
• Protein kinases are crucial targets in cancer, and benzimidazole scaffolds show promise as inhibitors.
• High-throughput screening aids in identifying novel cancer targets and therapeutic agents.

Purpose of the Study:

• To review benzimidazole-based compounds developed as protein kinase inhibitors with anticancer activity since 2015.
• To consolidate research on benzimidazoles targeting specific kinases like aurora kinase, CDK, CK2, EGFR, FGFR, and VEGFR-2.
• To provide insights for future development of benzimidazole-based anticancer drugs.

Main Methods:

• Literature review of scientific publications from 2015 onwards.
• Focus on benzimidazole derivatives designed as protein kinase inhibitors.
• Analysis of targeted kinases including aurora kinase, CDK, CK2, EGFR, FGFR, and VEGFR-2.

Main Results:

• Benzimidazole scaffolds are versatile and have yielded potent inhibitors for various protein kinases.
• Structural modifications of benzimidazoles influence their inhibitory activity and selectivity.
• Significant progress has been made in developing benzimidazole-based anticancer agents.

Conclusions:

• Benzimidazole derivatives represent a valuable class of compounds for targeted cancer therapy.
• Further research into structure-activity relationships can optimize benzimidazole-based kinase inhibitors.
• These compounds hold potential for the development of next-generation anticancer drugs.