Related Experiment Video
Updated: Apr 20, 2026

Self-Administration of Drugs in Mouse Models of Feeding and Obesity
Published on: June 8, 2021
[Regulation of PI3K-Akt-GSK3β signaling pathway in U251 cells by risperidone]
Linhui Liang1, Yingcheng Wang, Jinxue Wei
1Psychiatric Laboratory, State Key Laboratory of Biotherapy, West China Hospital, Sichuan University, Chengdu, Sichuan 610041, P. R. China. xuntao26@hotmail.com.
Objective:
To investigate the effect of risperidone, an antipsychotic drug, on the Akt-GSK3β pathway and the role of PI3K in dopamine D2 receptor (DRD2) expression and Akt-GSK3β signal pathway.
Methods:
Human glioma cells (U251) were cultured in vitro. Cells without any treatment as control, Western blotting was used for measuring the expression of Akt (Thr308 and Ser473) and GSK3β (Ser9) protein phosphorylation by risperidone and LY294002 in U251 cell, and real-time PCR was used for detecting the expression of DRD2 mRNA.
Results:
Risperidone has significantly enhanced the expression of phosphorylated Akt and phosphorylated GSK3β (P< 0.05), but did not alter the mRNA expression of DRD2. LY294002 could reduce the phosphorylation of Akt and GSK3β (P< 0.01, P< 0.05), and also decrease the DRD2 mRNA (P<0 .05).
Conclusion:
Risperidone can activate the Akt-GSK3β signaling pathway in the U251 cells, and PI3K is a common regulatory site in Akt-GSK3β signaling and D2 receptor gene expression.
Related Concept Videos
PI3K/mTOR/AKT Signaling Pathway
The JAK-STAT Signaling Pathway
mTOR Signaling and Cancer Progression
The mTOR pathway or the...
Interactions Between Signaling Pathways
Convergence and divergence, and cross-talk between signaling pathways
Two distinct signaling pathways can converge on a single functional unit, which may either be a single protein or a complex of proteins. The response is either functionally distinct or synergistic between the two pathways but different from the response...
The Ras Gene
Ras is a...
Inhibition of Cdk Activity

