Figure 7: Suppression of Akt and ERK1/2 phosphorylation by kisspeptin in the pituitary gland is not rescued in Gpr54^−/−-Tg mice.

(a) Western blot membrane showing phosphorylated Akt (pAkt), phosphorylated ERK1/2 (pERK1/2) and α-tubulin protein levels from four vehicle DMEM (DM)- and four kisspeptin-treated pituitary glands from female wild-type mice. The positions of kDa marker weights are shown to the right. Histograms to the right show mean+s.e.m. (n=4 each group) quantitated levels as a percentage of control values. Kisspeptin (10 nM) causes a significant reduction in both pAkt and pERK1/2 in wild-type mice. **P<0.01 Mann–Whitney U-test. (b) The same experiment in global Gpr54^−/− mice reveals an absence of kisspeptin action. (c) Similarly, the pituitary glands of rescue Gpr54^−/−;Tg mice do not show any response to kisspeptin. Full-length immunoblots are shown in Supplementary Fig. S1.