AKT1 and hepatocellular carcinoma: In addition, TGF-α has been reported to the induce activation of the AKT, p38 mitogen activated protein kinase (MAPK), c-jun N-terminal kinase (JNK) and Rho-kinase signaling pathways as well as the subsequent migration of human HCC-derived HuH7 cells [17, 18, 19].