Figure 7.

V1aR overexpression counteracts TNF-dependent protein degradation by stimulating the Akt pathway. (a) Western blots of phosphorylated Akt and native and phosphorylated FoxO3a expression demonstrate that in muscle overexpressing TNF, phospho-Akt and phospho-FoxO3a are downregulated, while the native Foxo3a is increased. In V1aR overexpressing muscles, the expression levels of phospho-FoxO3a and phospho-Akt is increased compared with TNF alone, while the native Foxo3a is reduced. (b–d) Densitometric analysis of three independent experiments of phospho-Akt, phospho-FoxO3a, and native FoxO3a expression levels. (e) Real-time PCR analysis revealed that the strong upregulation of atrogin-1 expression observed in the sample overexpressing TNF alone is downregulated in V1aR+TNF-transfected muscles. *P < 0.05; **P < 0.01 by Student's t-test.