AKT1 and esophageal squamous cell carcinoma: In addition, it has been demonstrated that the expression of cell proliferation and cell cycle-related proteins (such as cyclin D1 and p27), as well as cell apoptosis-related proteins (including Bcl-2 and Bax), as the downstream targets of the PI3K/Akt pathway, were regulated by the PI3K/Akt pathway in human ESCC cells (26).