自噬在EGFR-TKI类肿瘤靶向药物对肺癌的治疗和耐药中作用的研究进展

Epidermal growth factor receptor tyrosine kinase inhibitor (EGFR-TKI) is a group of targeted-drugs which effectively inhibits the growth of tumor cells with sensitive mutations in EGFR. However, the innate and acquired resistance are major obstacles of the efficiency. Autophagy is a highly conserved self-digesting process in cells, which is considered to be associated with cancer development andchemoresistance. The activation of EGFR may regulate autophagy through multiple signal pathways. EGFR-TKIs can induce autophagy, however, the function of the inducted autophagy remains biphasic. On one hand, autophagy induced by EGFR-TKI acts as a cytoprotective response in cancer cells, and autophagy inhibitors can enhance the cytotoxic effects of EGFR-TKI. On the other hand, a high level of autophagy after treatment of EGFR-TKI can also result in autophagic cell death lacking features of apoptosis, and the combination of EGFR-TKI with autophagy inducer might be beneficial. Thus, autophagy regulation represents a promising approach for improving the efficiency of EGFR-TKI in the treatment of cancer patients. Here we summarized the signaling pathways involved in EGFR-TKI induced autophagy, and reviewed the roles of autophagy in the treatment and chemoresistance of EGFR-TKI treatment in lung cancer.