Kinases in biochemistry are enzymes that transfer phosphate groups from high-energy donor molecules to specific target molecules, with the largest group being protein kinases. Kinases play a diverse role in cell signaling and complex biological activities. Different kinases act on different small molecules, either to send signals or prepare them for various biochemical reactions in metabolism.
Kinases are a crucial class of targets in anti-tumor drug development, with breakthroughs made in developing new drugs targeting key kinases like ALK/ROS1 for non-small cell lung cancer, JAK2 for various hematologic malignancies, and CDK9 for blood system tumors and lymphomas. While new kinase inhibitors for ALK/ROS1, JAK2, and CDK9 have shown significant progress in clinical treatment, issues such as acquired resistance and toxic side effects have emerged with their widespread use.
