Design and synthesis of Imidazo[1,2-b]pyridazine IRAK4 inhibitors for the treatment of mutant MYD88 L265P diffuse large B-cell lymphoma

Harboring MYD88 L265P mutation triggers tumors growth through the activation of NF-κB by interleukin-1 receptor associated kinase 4 (IRAK4) in diffuse large B-cell lymphoma (DLBCL), highlighting IRAK4 as a therapeutic target for tumors driven by aberrant MYD88 signaling. Herein, we report the design, synthesis, and structure−activity relationships of imidazo[1,2-b]pyridazines as potent IRAK4 inhibitors. The representative compound 5 exhibited excellent IRAK4 potency (IRAK4 IC50 = 1.3 nM) and favorable kinase selectivity profile. It demonstrated cellular selectivity for activated B cell–like (ABC) subtype DLBCL with MYD88 L265P mutation in cytotoxicity assay. The kinase inhibitory efficiency of compound 5 was further validated by Western blot analysis of phosphorylation of IRAK4 and downstream signaling in OCI-LY10 and TMD8 cells. Besides, combination of compound 5 and BTK inhibitor ibrutinib synergistically reduced the viability of TMD8 cells. These results indicated that compound 5 could be a promising IRAK4 inhibitor for the treatment of mutant MYD88 DLBCL.