The protein encoded by this gene is a member of the AKT, also called PKB, serine/threonine protein kinase family. AKT kinases are known to be regulators of cell signaling in response to insulin and growth factors. They are involved in a wide variety of biological processes including cell proliferation, differentiation, apoptosis, tumorigenesis, as well as glycogen synthesis and glucose uptake. This kinase has been shown to be stimulated by platelet-derived growth factor (PDGF), insulin, and insulin-like growth factor 1 (IGF1). Alternatively splice transcript variants encoding distinct isoforms have been described. [provided by RefSeq, Jul 2008].