Mirk/Dyrk1B Kinase Inhibitors in Targeted Cancer Therapy

During the last years, there has been an increased effort in the discovery of selective and potent kinase inhibitors for targeted cancer therapy. Kinase inhibitors exhibit less toxicity compared to conventional chemotherapy, and several have entered the market. Mirk/Dyrk1B kinase is a promising pharmacological target in cancer since it is overexpressed in many tumors, and its overexpression is correlated with patients’ poor prognosis. Mirk/Dyrk1B acts as a negative cell cycle regulator, maintaining the survival of quiescent cancer cells and conferring their resistance to chemotherapies. Many studies have demonstrated the valuable therapeutic effect of Mirk/Dyrk1B inhibitors in cancer cell lines, mouse xenografts, and patient-derived 3D-organoids, providing a perspective for entering clinical trials. Since the majority of Mirk/Dyrk1B inhibitors target the highly conserved ATP-binding site, they exhibit off-target effects with other kinases, especially with the highly similar Dyrk1A. In this review, apart from summarizing the data establishing Dyrk1B as a therapeutic target in cancer, we highlight the most potent Mirk/Dyrk1B inhibitors recently reported. We also discuss the limitations and perspectives for the structure-based design of Mirk/Dyrk1B potent and highly selective inhibitors based on the accumulated structural data of Dyrk1A and the recent crystal structure of Dyrk1B with AZ191 inhibitor.