JNK signalling in cancer: in need of new, smarter therapeutic targets

The JNKs are master protein kinases that regulate many physiological processes, including inflammatory responses, morphogenesis, cell proliferation, differentiation, survival and death. It is increasingly apparent that persistent activation of JNKs is involved in cancer development and progression. Therefore, JNKs represent attractive targets for therapeutic intervention with small molecule kinase inhibitors. However, evidence supportive of a tumour suppressor role for the JNK proteins has also been documented. Recent studies showed that the two major JNK proteins, JNK1 and JNK2, have distinct or even opposing functions in different types of cancer. As such, close consideration of which JNK proteins are beneficial targets and, more importantly, what effect small molecule inhibitors of JNKs have on physiological processes, are essential. A number of ATP-competitive and ATP-non-competitive JNK inhibitors have been developed, but have several limitations such as a lack of specificity and cellular toxicity. In this review, we summarize the accumulating evidence supporting a role for the JNK proteins in the pathogenesis of different solid and haematological malignancies, and discuss many challenges and scientific opportunities in the targeting of JNKs in cancer.