AKT2 is a serine/threonine protein kinase and a key member of the PI3K/AKT signaling pathway, playing critical roles in glucose metabolism, insulin sensitivity, and cellular survival. AKT2 is activated by phosphorylation at Thr308 and Ser473 downstream of PI3K, promoting glucose uptake, glycogen synthesis, and lipogenesis while inhibiting gluconeogenesis. It is particularly important in muscle and adipose tissue for maintaining glucose homeostasis. Mutations or altered expression of AKT2 are associated with type 2 diabetes, metabolic syndrome, and various cancers including breast, ovarian, and pancreatic carcinomas. In oncology, AKT2 promotes tumor cell survival, proliferation, and metastasis while conferring resistance to apoptosis. Therapeutic targeting of AKT2 through selective inhibitors represents a promising strategy for both metabolic disorders and cancer treatment.
The AlphaLISA SureFire Ultra Human and Mouse Total AKT2 is a sandwich immunoassay for the quantitative detection of total AKT2 in cellular lysates, using Alpha Technology.
Formats:
The HV (high volume) kit contains reagents to run 100 wells in 96-well format, using a 60 μL reaction volume.
The 500-point kit contains enough reagents to run 500 wells in 384-well format, using a 20 μL reaction volume.
The 10,000-point kit contains enough reagents to run 10,000 wells in 384-well format, using a 20 μL reaction volume.
The 50,000-point kit contains enough reagents to run 50,000 wells in 384-well format, using a 20 μL reaction volume.
AlphaLISA SureFire Ultra kits are compatible with:
Cell and tissue lysates
Antibody modulators
Biotherapeutic antibodies
AlphaLISA SureFire Ultra kits can be used for:
Cellular kinase assays
Receptor activation studies
High-throughput screening for preclinical studies
Total-AlphaLISA SureFire Ultra assay principle
The Total-AlphaLISA SureFire Ultra assay measures the expression level of a target protein in a biological sample (e.g. cell lysate).
The Total-AlphaLISA SureFire Ultra assay uses two antibodies which recognize two different distal epitopes on the target protein. AlphaLISA assays require two bead types: Acceptor and Donor Beads. Acceptor Beads are coated with a proprietary CaptSure™ agent to specifically immobilize the assay specific antibody, labeled with a CaptSure tag. Donor Beads are coated with streptavidin to capture one of the detection antibodies, which is biotinylated. In the presence of target protein, the two antibodies bring the Donor and Acceptor Beads in close proximity whereby the singlet oxygen transfers energy to excite the Acceptor Bead, allowing for the generation of a luminescent Alpha signal. The amount of light emission is directly proportional to the quantity of protein present in the sample.
Total-AlphaLISA SureFire Ultra two-plate assay protocol
The two-plate protocol involves culturing and treating the cells in a 96-well plate before lysis, then transferring lysates into a 384-well OptiPlate™ plate before the addition of Total-AlphaLISA SureFire Ultra detection reagents. This protocol enables cell viability and confluence to be monitored. In addition, lysates from a single well can be used to measure multiple targets.
Total-AlphaLISA SureFire Ultra one-plate assay protocol
Detection of Total target protein with AlphaLISA SureFire Ultra reagents can be performed in a single plate used for culturing, treatment, and lysis. No washing steps are required. This HTS designed protocol allows for miniaturization while maintaining robust AlphaLISA SureFire Ultra quality.
Validation of AKT2 Total in insulin treated cells
MCF7 and NIH/3T3 cells were seeded in a 96-well plate (40,000 cells/well) in complete medium and incubated overnight at 37°C, 5% CO2. The cells were starved for 2 hours and then treated with increasing concentrations of insulin for 30 minutes.
After treatment, the cells were lysed with 100 µL of Lysis Buffer for 10 minutes at RT with shaking (350 rpm). AKT2 Phospho (Ser474) and Total levels were evaluated using respective AlphaLISA SureFire Ultra assays. For the detection step, 10 µL of cell lysate (approximately 4,000 cells) was transferred into a 384-well white OptiPlate, followed by 5 µL of Acceptor mix and incubated for 1 hour at RT. Finally, 5 µL of Donor mix was then added to each well and incubated for 1 hour at RT in the dark. The plate was read on an Envision using standard AlphaLISA settings.
As expected, insulin triggered a dose-dependent increase in the levels of AKT2 Phospho (Ser474), while total levels remained unchanged.
Validation of AKT2 Total in IGF-1 treated cells
HeLa cells were seeded in a 96-well plate (40,000 cells/well) in complete medium and incubated overnight at 37°C, 5% CO2. The cells were starved for 2 hours and then treated with increasing concentrations of IGF-1 for 15 minutes.
After treatment, the cells were lysed with 100 µL of Lysis Buffer for 10 minutes at RT with shaking (350 rpm). AKT2 Phospho (Ser474) and Total levels were evaluated using respective AlphaLISA SureFire Ultra assays. For the detection step, 10 µL of cell lysate (approximately 4,000 cells) was transferred into a 384-well white OptiPlate, followed by 5 µL of Acceptor mix and incubated for 1 hour at RT. Finally, 5 µL of Donor mix was then added to each well and incubated for 1 hour at RT in the dark. The plate was read on an Envision using standard AlphaLISA settings.
As expected, IGF-1 triggered a dose-dependent increase in the levels of AKT2 Phospho (Ser474), while Total levels remained unchanged.
Validation of AKT2 Total in HEK293 cells
HEK293 cells were seeded in a 96-well plate (40,000 cells/well) in complete medium and incubated overnight at 37°C, 5% CO2. The cells were treated for 24 hours with increasing concentrations of Luminespib for 24 hours.
After treatment, the cells were lysed with 200 µL of Lysis Buffer for 10 minutes at RT with shaking (350 rpm). AKT2 Phospho (Ser474) and Total levels were evaluated using respective AlphaLISA SureFire Ultra assays. For the detection step, 10 µL of cell lysate (approximately 2,000 cells) was transferred into a 384-well white OptiPlate, followed by 5 µL of Acceptor mix and incubated for 1 hour at RT. Finally, 5 µL of Donor mix was then added to each well and incubated for 1 hour at RT in the dark. The plate was read on an Envision using standard AlphaLISA settings.
As expected, Luminespib triggered a dose-dependent decrease in the levels of AKT2 Phospho (Ser474), while Total levels remained unchanged.
HEK293 cells were seeded in a 96-well plate (40,000 cells/well) in complete medium and incubated overnight at 37°C, 5% CO2. The cells were treated for 2 hours with increasing concentrations of Wortmannin for 2 hours.
After treatment, the cells were lysed with 100 µL of Lysis Buffer for 10 minutes at RT with shaking (350 rpm). AKT2 Phospho (Ser474) and Total levels were evaluated using respective AlphaLISA SureFire Ultra assays. For the detection step, 10 µL of cell lysate (approximately 4,000 cells) was transferred into a 384-well white OptiPlate, followed by 5 µL of Acceptor mix and incubated for 1 hour at RT. Finally, 5 µL of Donor mix was then added to each well and incubated for 1 hour at RT in the dark. The plate was read on an Envision using standard AlphaLISA settings.
As expected, Wortmannin triggered a dose-dependent decrease in the levels of AKT2 Phospho (Ser474), while total levels did not change significantly.
Specific degradation of AKT2 using MS170 PROTAC
PC3 cells were seeded in a 96-well plate (40,000 cells/well) in complete medium and incubated overnight at 37°C, 5% CO2. The cells were treated with increasing concentrations of MS170 PROTAC for 24 hours.
After treatment, the cells were washed with HBSS and lysed with 100 µL of Lysis Buffer for 10 minutes at RT with shaking (350 rpm). AKT2 and Cofilin Total levels were evaluated using AlphaLISA SureFire Ultra. For the detection step, 10 µL of cell lysate (approximately 4,000 cells) was transferred into a 384-well white OptiPlate, followed by 5 µL of Acceptor mix and incubated for 1 hour at RT. Finally, 5 µL of Donor mix was then added to each well and incubated for 1 hour at RT in the dark. The plate was read on an Envision using standard AlphaLISA settings.
As expected, MS170 PROTAC induced a specific dose-dependent decrease in the levels of AKT2.
Specificity of AKT2 Total assay
Specificity of the AKT2 Total assay for AKT2 protein was assessed by assaying active recombinant AKT1, AKT2 and AKT3 proteins.
Dilutions of AKT1 (Abcam, ab62279), AKT2 (Abcam, ab60324) and AKT3 (Abcam, ab60324) proteins were prepared in Lysis Buffer at the indicated concentrations. AKT2 Total signal was evaluated using the AlphaLISA SureFire Ultra assay. For the detection step, 10 µL of protein was transferred into a 384-well white OptiPlate, followed by 5 µL of Acceptor mix and incubated for 1 hour at room temperature. Finally, 5 µL of Donor mix was then added to each well and incubated for 1 hour at RT in the dark. The plate was read on an Envision using standard AlphaLISA settings.
Alpha signal was only detected with AKT2 recombinant protein, while no cross-reactivity was observed with AKT1 and AKT3 proteins. These results demonstrate the specificity of the AKT2 Total assay as these three proteins shares approximately 80% sequence identity.
AKT2 expression in various cell lines
Adherent cell lines were seeded in a 96-well plate (40,000 cells/well) and incubated overnight at 37°C, 5% CO2. Cells were lysed with 100 µL of Lysis Buffer for 10 minutes at RT with shaking (350 rpm).
Suspension cell lines were seeded in a 96-well plate (400,000 cells/well) in HBSS + 0.1% BSA and then lysed with 100 µL of Lysis Buffer for 10 minutes at RT with shaking (350 rpm).
AKT2 Total levels were evaluated by AlphaLISA SureFire Ultra. For the detection step, 10 µL of cell lysate (approximately 4,000 adherent cells or 40,000 suspension cells) was transferred into a 384-well white OptiPlate, followed by 5 µL of Acceptor Mix and incubated for 1 hour at RT. Finally, 5 µL of Donor Mix was then added to each well and incubated for 1 hour at RT in the dark. The plate was read on an Envision using standard AlphaLISA settings.
