title: Activation of protein kinase B (Akt) signaling after electroconvulsive shock in the rat hippocampus.
abstract: Akt (protein kinase B, PKB) is one of the major downstream pathways of neurotrophin signaling and plays important roles in the cell survival and synaptic plasticity of the central nervous system. Electroconvulsive shock (ECS) has neurotrophic effect and it affects the synaptic plasticity. It can activate another major pathway of neurotrophin signaling, i.e., Ras-Raf-MEK-Erk cascade. In this paper, the authors investigated whether ECS can activate Akt signaling in the rat hippocampus. After a single ECS, the phosphorylation of Akt was increased, as were the signals detected by phospho-PDK1 substrate antibody, which suggests the activation of PDK1, an upstream molecule of Akt. The phosphorylation of downstream molecules of Akt, forkhead transcription factors (FKHR), endothelial nitric oxide synthase (eNOS), and glycogen synthase kinase-3beta (GSK-3beta) was also increased. The increased phosphorylation of Akt appeared within 5 min of ECS and its time frame paralleled that of the phosphorylation of Erks. Taken together, these results suggest that ECS activates Akt signaling over a similar time scale to that of Erks in the rat hippocampus.
authors.affiliation: Department of Psychiatry and Behavioral Science, Seoul National University College of Medicine and Clinical Research Institute, Seoul National University Hospital, Seoul, South Korea.
authors.forename: Ung Gu
authors.initials: UG
authors.lastname: Kang
authors.forename: Myoung-Sun
authors.initials: MS
authors.lastname: Roh
authors.forename: Ju-Ri
authors.initials: JR
authors.lastname: Jung
authors.forename: Soon Young
authors.initials: SY
authors.lastname: Shin
authors.forename: Young Han
authors.initials: YH
authors.lastname: Lee
authors.forename: Joo-Bae
authors.initials: JB
authors.lastname: Park
authors.forename: Yong Sik
authors.initials: YS
authors.lastname: Kim
mesh_terms: D000818:Animals; D019138:Antibodies, Blocking / Q000494:pharmacology; D004268:DNA-Binding Proteins / Q000502:physiology; D004597:Electroshock; D004789:Enzyme Activation / Q000502:physiology; D051858:Forkhead Transcription Factors; D038362:Glycogen Synthase Kinase 3 / Q000502:physiology; D006624:Hippocampus / Q000201:enzymology* / Q000502:physiology*; D008297:Male; D009419:Nerve Tissue Proteins; D019001:Nitric Oxide Synthase / Q000502:physiology; D052250:Nitric Oxide Synthase Type III; D010766:Phosphorylation; D017346:Protein Serine-Threonine Kinases; D011518:Proto-Oncogene Proteins / Q000037:antagonists & inhibitors / Q000378:metabolism*; D051057:Proto-Oncogene Proteins c-akt; D051381:Rats; D017207:Rats, Sprague-Dawley; D015398:Signal Transduction / Q000502:physiology*; D014157:Transcription Factors / Q000502:physiology; D000071161:Forkhead Box Protein O1
chemical_list: D019138:Antibodies, Blocking; D004268:DNA-Binding Proteins; D051858:Forkhead Transcription Factors; D038362:Glycogen Synthase Kinase 3; D009419:Nerve Tissue Proteins; D019001:Nitric Oxide Synthase; D052250:Nitric Oxide Synthase Type III; D017346:Protein Serine-Threonine Kinases; D011518:Proto-Oncogene Proteins; D051057:Proto-Oncogene Proteins c-akt; D014157:Transcription Factors; C074639:Foxo1 protein, rat; D000071161:Forkhead Box Protein O1; C496316:Nos3 protein, rat; C494920:Akt1 protein, rat