A practical guide for the assay-dependent characterisation of irreversible inhibitors

Abstract

Irreversible targeted covalent inhibitors, in the past regarded as inappropriately reactive and toxic, have seen a recent resurgence in clinical interest. This paradigm shift is attributed to the exploitation of the two-step mechanism, in which a high affinity and selectivity (i.e., low K_I) scaffold binds the target and only then does a pendant low intrinsic reactivity warhead react with the target (moderate k_inact). This highlights the importance of evaluating inhibitors by deriving both their K_I and k_inact values. The development of methods to evaluate these inhibitors by accounting for their time-dependent nature has been crucial to the discovery of promising clinical candidates. Herein, we report all the practical kinetic methods available to date to derive k_inact and K_I values. These methods include direct observation of covalent modification, continuous assay (Kitz & Wilson) evaluation, and discontinuous incubation and pre-incubation time-dependent IC₅₀ assays. We also provide practical guidelines and examples for performing these assays, comparison of their utility, and perspectives for their extended applications. This review aims to provide clarity about the use of these methods for reporting complete inhibitor kinetic profiles, guiding irreversible drug development towards increased target affinity and selectivity, while modulating in vivo stability and on-target reactivity.