Investigating the Role of AMPK in Inflammation

In addition to the well-characterized role of AMPK in the regulation of nutrient metabolism, it is increasingly clear that AMPK activation has multiple actions on inflammatory signalling. Here we describe methods to identify effects of AMPK activity on pro-inflammatory signalling, specifically (1) the nuclear localization of the key inflammatory mediators nuclear factor-κB (NFκB) and phosphorylated c-Jun N-terminal kinase (JNK), (2) preparation of conditioned medium to analyze the secretion of cytokines/chemokines, and (3) the pro-inflammatory adhesion of leukocytes to cultured cells.