Recent Highlights in Targeted Protein Degradation

Leniolisib is a selective PI3Kδ inhibitor that received approval in March 2023 from the FDA as a first-in-class treatment for activated PI3K-δ syndrome (APDS), a genetic immunodeficiency disorder caused by PI3Kδ activation. The leniolisib discovery program is notable for several reasons: it is a first approval for a PI3K inhibitor outside of oncology; the first approved drug for APDS; has a novel chemotype that appears to avoid safety issues that led to black box warnings seen with other PI3K molecules; and it overcame a polymorph issue with an early lead that led to inconsistent exposures.

The team reviews hundreds of compounds from thousands of papers, press releases, and other sources each month to select candidates for Molecules of the Month. Here we have compiled a table of >70 additional molecules that were of interest in November 2023 along with some highlights from some of our favorites below.

This article highlights million-dollar molecules that were recently in the news with related patent applications that give clues to their structures and properties. This edition includes Maze’s glycogen synthase 1 (GYS1) inhibitors that were recently licensed to Sanofi, allosteric androgen receptor (AR) modulators that may be of interest to targeted protein degradation researchers, brain-penetrant HER2 and ROCK2 inhibitors, and MDM2 degraders.

This article reviews the novel drugs approved by the FDA in February 2022. together with Dr. Naveed Yasin, Dr. Vinicius Texeira, and Dr. Jennifer Huen Three novel molecules were approved in February 2022: Small molecules: Pyrukynd (mitapivat) : An oral pyruvate kinase activator approved for the treatment of hemolytic anemia in adults with [...]

There continue to be opportunities for another KRAS(G12C) inhibitor to prove itself best-in-class.

This roundup highlights twelve KRAS(G12C) molecules to know, with links to recent case studies on Drug Hunter going in more detail.