PT  - JOURNAL ARTICLE
AU  - Wen, Yong
AU  - Hu, Mickey C-T.
AU  - Makino, Keishi
AU  - Spohn, Bill
AU  - Bartholomeusz, Geoffrey
AU  - Yan, Duen-Hwa
AU  - Hung, Mien-Chie
TI  - <em>HER-2/neu</em> Promotes Androgen-independent Survival and Growth of Prostate Cancer Cells through the Akt Pathway
DP  - 2000 Dec 15
TA  - Cancer Research
PG  - 6841--6845
VI  - 60
IP  - 24
4099  - http://cancerres.aacrjournals.org/content/60/24/6841.short
4100  - http://cancerres.aacrjournals.org/content/60/24/6841.full
SO  - Cancer Res2000 Dec 15; 60
AB  - HER-2/neu has been implicated in the activation of androgen receptor (AR) and in inducing hormone-independent prostate cancer growth. Here we report that HER-2/neu activates Akt (protein kinase B) to promote prostate cancer cell survival and growth in the absence of androgen. Blocking of the Akt pathway by a dominant-negative Akt or an inhibitor LY294002 abrogates the HER-2/neu-induced AR signaling and cell survival/growth effects in the absence or presence of androgen. Akt specifically binds to AR and phosphorylates serines 213 and 791 of AR. Thus, Akt is a novel activator of AR required for HER-2/neu signaling to androgen-independent survival and growth of prostate cancer cells.