Expression of Akt and MAPK in the Normal and Regenerating Peripheral Nerves and Their Dorsal Root Ganglia

PI3K-Akt and Ras-MAPK pathways were both implicated in cell survival and neurite-outgrowth, respectively. Akt has been suggested to be involved in neuronal survival and MAPK in neurite outgrowth during development. This study investigated if Akt, a component of PI3K-Akt pathway, and MAPK/ERK, a component of Ras-MAPK pathway, were expressed in the normal and regenerating dorsal root ganglia and their respective peripheral nerves. Western blot investigations carried out on rodent nerve tissues showed that both phospho-Akt and phospho-MAPK were expressed after axotomy. Therefore, both the phosphoproteins appeared to be important not only during nerve development but also during nerve regeneration.