EGFR kinase inhibitors from novel thiazole derivatives: synthesis, anticolon cancer, docking, and ADME studies

The epidermal growth factor receptor (EGFR) is a key regulator of malignant cell growth and survival, making it an attractive target for cancer therapy. In this study, a new series of thiazole derivatives was rationally designed and synthesized as potential EGFR inhibitors and evaluated for their antiproliferative activity against two human colon cancer cell lines (HCT-116 and HT29). Several compounds exhibited potent anticancer activity, with compound 4j showing the highest potency, displaying half-maximal inhibitory concentration (IC50) values of 2.10 and 1.91 µM against HCT-116 and HT29 cells, respectively. Owing to its superior antiproliferative activity, compound 4j was further evaluated for EGFR inhibitory activity and demonstrated remarkable potency with an IC50 value of 0.27 µM. In addition, 4j exhibited a favorable selectivity index toward normal WI38 cells and effectively induced apoptosis through modulation of Bax, Bcl-2, and p53 expression. Molecular docking demonstrated strong binding interactions of 4j within the EGFR active site, while its ADME predictions supported its favorable drug-like profile. Overall, compound 4j represents a promising lead candidate for the development of novel EGFR-targeted anticancer agents.