Akt Signaling--Linking Membrane Events to Life and Death Decisions

Abstract

Many growth factors exert their effects on cells by simulating intracellular kinases, which add phosphate groups to proteins. Two reports on p. 661 and p. 665 of this week's issue implicate the oncogenic kinase Akt in IGF-1-mediated neuronal survival (Dudek et al .) and show how lipids can regulate the activity of Akt (Franke et al .). In his Perspective, Hemmings discusses these results and several other recent reports about Akt and its unique mode of activation by phospholipids.