PD153035, a tyrosine kinase inhibitor, prevents epidermal growth factor receptor activation and inhibits growth of cancer cells in a receptor number-dependent manner

PD153035 is reported to be a specific and potent inhibitor of the epidermal growth factor (EGF) receptor tyrosine kinase and, to a lesser degree, of the closely related HER2/neu receptor. We show that PD153035 inhibits EGF-dependent EGF receptor phosphorylation and suppresses the proliferation and clonogenicity of a wide panel of EGF receptor-overexpressing human Cancer cell lines. EGF receptor autophosphorylation in response to exogenous EGF was completely inhibited at PD153035 concentrations of >75 nM in cells overexpressing the EGF receptor. In contrast, PD153035 only reduced heregulin-dependent tyrosine phosphorylation in HER2/neu-overexpressing cell lines at significantly higher concentrations (1400-2800 nM). PD153035 exposure did not affect the expression of either EGF receptors or HER2/neu. PD153035 caused a dose-dependent growth inhibition of EGF receptor-overexpressing cell lines at low micromolar concentrations, and the IC50 in monolayer cultures was less than 1 microM in most cell lines tested. At doses of up to 2.5 microM, the IC50 for HER2/neu-overexpressing cells was not reached. In colony-forming assays, the PD153035 growth-inhibitory activity in cultures driven by endogenous (autocrine) ligand was correlated with EGF receptor number, with higher activity in cells expressing higher numbers of EGF receptors and only minimal activity in cells expressing normal numbers of EGF receptors but high HER2/neu levels. PD153053 also abolished all growth effects mediated by the addition of exogenous EGF; this condition could be reversed upon removal of the compound. Cotreatment with C225, an anti-EGF receptor-blocking monoclonal antibody, further enhanced the antitumor activity of PD153035, suggesting mechanisms of action for C225 other than competition with ligand binding. This latter finding also suggests that combined anti-EGF receptor strategies may be of enhanced benefit against tumors with high levels of EGF receptor expression.