Akt2 (also designated protein kinase B beta or v-akt murine thymoma viral oncogene homolog 2 ), with 481-amino acid protein (about 53kDa), belongs to the AKT serine/threonine protein kinase family, which also includes Akt1 and Akt3. They are involved in a wide variety of biological processes including cell proliferation, differentiation, apoptosis, tumorigenesis, as well as glycogen synthesis and glucose uptake. Among the members of AKT family, Akt2 is associated with the development of human cancers. Akt2 inhibits cisplatin-induced JNK/p38 and Bax activation through phosphorylation of ASK1 and thus, plays an important role in chemoresistance. Further, Akt2 plays a specific role in muscle differentiation.
