Repurposing drugs for EGFR-targeted cancer therapy: An in silico and in vitro study with pharmacophore-based insights


Siyah P., BARLAS F. B.

Journal of Molecular Graphics and Modelling, cilt.144, 2026 (SCI-Expanded, Scopus) identifier identifier

  • Yayın Türü: Makale / Tam Makale
  • Cilt numarası: 144
  • Basım Tarihi: 2026
  • Doi Numarası: 10.1016/j.jmgm.2026.109288
  • Dergi Adı: Journal of Molecular Graphics and Modelling
  • Derginin Tarandığı İndeksler: Science Citation Index Expanded (SCI-EXPANDED), Scopus, BIOSIS, Chemical Abstracts Core, Chimica, Compendex, EMBASE, INSPEC, MEDLINE
  • Anahtar Kelimeler: Cancer therapy, Docking, EGFR, Ligand and structure based virtual screening, MD simulation
  • İstanbul Üniversitesi-Cerrahpaşa Adresli: Evet

Özet

Cancer is the second leading cause of death globally and remains a priority due to its impact on life quality, treatment complexity, and high costs. To expedite drug development, researchers are increasingly repurposing FDA-approved drugs and clinical candidates, reducing time and costs through in silico methods. In this study, 3235 FDA-approved and clinical molecules were screened for EGFR inhibition, a significant target due to its role in cancer progression and treatment resistance. A pharmacophore model was generated based on erlotinib's co-crystallized structure and quantitative structure-activity relationships. Molecules meeting the pharmacophoric criteria underwent SP and XP docking, with thresholds of −6.00 kcal/mol and −7.00 kcal/mol, respectively, followed by anti-cancer potential analysis via MetaCore/MetaDrug and MD simulations at 1, 10, and 100 ns to assess EGFR-binding stability. For the molecule Ticagrelor, which demonstrated particularly promising results, and Erlotinib cell culture viability assays were conducted across three cell lines—cancerous A549, U87, and healthy BEAS-2B— (IC50) of, 8.2576 μM, 9.4058 μM, and 15.893 μM, respectively for Ticagrelor and 11.708 μM, 12.747 μM and 14.6709 μM, respectively for Erlotinib. In silico results highlight Ticagrelor's significant EGFR-inhibiting potential with enhanced binding stability compared to the reference.