Open Access
Open access
Exploration of Targeted Anti-tumor Therapy, volume 1, issue 5

Current strategies for the design of PROTAC linkers: a critical review

Robert I Troup 1
Charlene Fallan 2
M G J Baud 1
2
 
Medicinal Chemistry, Oncology R&D, AstraZeneca, Cambridge Science Park, Milton Road, CB4 0WG Cambridge, UK
Publication typeJournal Article
Publication date2020-10-11
Quartile SCImago
Quartile WOS
Impact factor
ISSN26923114
Abstract

PROteolysis TArgeting Chimeras (PROTACs) are heterobifunctional molecules consisting of two ligands; an “anchor” to bind to an E3 ubiquitin ligase and a “warhead” to bind to a protein of interest, connected by a chemical linker. Targeted protein degradation by PROTACs has emerged as a new modality for the knock down of a range of proteins, with the first agents now reaching clinical evaluation. It has become increasingly clear that the length and composition of the linker play critical roles on the physicochemical properties and bioactivity of PROTACs. While linker design has historically received limited attention, the PROTAC field is evolving rapidly and currently undergoing an important shift from synthetically tractable alkyl and polyethylene glycol to more sophisticated functional linkers. This promises to unlock a wealth of novel PROTAC agents with enhanced bioactivity for therapeutic intervention. Here, the authors provide a timely overview of the diverse linker classes in the published literature, along with their underlying design principles and overall influence on the properties and bioactivity of the associated PROTACs. Finally, the authors provide a critical analysis of current strategies for PROTAC assembly. The authors highlight important limitations associated with the traditional “trial and error” approach around linker design and selection, and suggest potential future avenues to further inform rational linker design and accelerate the identification of optimised PROTACs. In particular, the authors believe that advances in computational and structural methods will play an essential role to gain a better understanding of the structure and dynamics of PROTAC ternary complexes, and will be essential to address the current gaps in knowledge associated with PROTAC design.

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GOST Copy
Troup R. I., Fallan C., Baud M. G. J. Current strategies for the design of PROTAC linkers: a critical review // Exploration of Targeted Anti-tumor Therapy. 2020. Vol. 1. No. 5.
GOST all authors (up to 50) Copy
Troup R. I., Fallan C., Baud M. G. J. Current strategies for the design of PROTAC linkers: a critical review // Exploration of Targeted Anti-tumor Therapy. 2020. Vol. 1. No. 5.
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RIS Copy
TY - JOUR
DO - 10.37349/etat.2020.00018
UR - https://www.explorationpub.com/Journals/etat/Article/100218
TI - Current strategies for the design of PROTAC linkers: a critical review
T2 - Exploration of Targeted Anti-tumor Therapy
AU - Troup, Robert I
AU - Fallan, Charlene
AU - Baud, M G J
PY - 2020
DA - 2020/10/11 00:00:00
PB - Open Exploration Publishing
IS - 5
VL - 1
SN - 2692-3114
ER -
BibTex
Cite this
BibTex Copy
@article{2020_Troup,
author = {Robert I Troup and Charlene Fallan and M G J Baud},
title = {Current strategies for the design of PROTAC linkers: a critical review},
journal = {Exploration of Targeted Anti-tumor Therapy},
year = {2020},
volume = {1},
publisher = {Open Exploration Publishing},
month = {oct},
url = {https://www.explorationpub.com/Journals/etat/Article/100218},
number = {5},
doi = {10.37349/etat.2020.00018}
}
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