Ceritinib

Ceritinib inhibits Anaplastic lymphoma kinase (ALK) also known as ALK tyrosine kinase receptor or CD246 (cluster of differentiation 246), which is an enzyme that in humans is encoded by the ALK gene. About 4-5% of NSCLCs have a chromosomal rearrangement that generates a fusion gene between EML4 (echinoderm microtubule-associated protein-like 4) and ALK (anaplastic lymphoma kinase), which results in constitutive kinase activity that contributes to carcinogenesis and seems to drive the malignant phenotype. Ceritinib exerts its therapeutic effect by inhibiting autophosphorylation of ALK, ALK-mediated phosphorylation of the downstream signaling protein STAT3, and proliferation of ALK-dependent cancer cells. Ceritinib has been shown to inhibit in vitro proliferation of cell lines expressing EML4-ALK and NPM-ALK fusion proteins and demonstrated dose-dependent inhibition of EML4-ALK-positive NSCLC xenograft growth in mice and rats.