AKT1 and autism: In animal models of autism, exercise intervention stimulated the signaling pathway involving phosphatidylinositol-3-kinase (PI3K), protein kinase B (Akt), and extracellular signal-regulated protein kinases 1 and 2 (ERK 1/2), leading to inhibition of neuronal apoptosis in the brain and thereby improving spatial learning, memory, and decision making as well as neurogenesis in the hippocampus (Seo et al., 2013).