Anti-phospho-Akt (Ser473) Antibody, clone 6F5

Akt/PKB is a Ser/Thr kinase and a major known effecter of the PI3 Kinase pathway. It is involved in multiple signaling pathways that relate to many biological processes including glucose metabolism, cell survival/apoptosis, cell cycle control, angiogenesis, differentiation, and cell growth and proliferation. In mammals three isoforms of Akt (Akt1/PKB, Akt2/PKB, and Akt3/PKB)exists. They exhibit a high degree of homology, but differ slightly in the localization of their regulatory phosphorylation sites. Akt is the predominant isoform that is in most tissues and is thought to have a dominant role in growth, survival, embryonic development, and adipocyte differentiation. Akt2 is correlated with the regulation of glucose homeostasis and is the predominant isoform expressed in insulin-responsive tissues. Akt3 is abundant in brain tissue. Each Akt isoform is composed of three functionally distinct regions: an N-terminal Pleckstrin Homology (PH) domain that provides a lipid-binding module to direct Akt to PIP3 at the cell membrane that is necessary for its activation, a central catalytic domain containing Thr308, and a C-terminal hydrophobic motif containing Ser473. The activation of Akt is dependent on a dual regulatory mechanism that requires both its translocation to the plasma membrane and dual phosphorylation on Thr308 and Ser473 by PDK1 and the TORC2 complex, respectively.