The effects of troglitazone on AMPK in HepG2 cells.

AMP-activated protein kinase (AMPK) is an enzyme crucial in cellular metabolism found to be inhibited in many metabolic diseases including type 2 diabetes. Thiazolidinediones (TZDs) are a class of anti-diabetic drug known to activate AMPK through increased phosphorylation at Thr, however there has been no research to date on whether they have any effect on inhibition of AMPK's lesser known site of inhibition, Ser. HepG2 cells were treated with troglitazone and phosphorylation of AMPK was found to increase at both Thr and Ser in a dose- and time-dependent manner.