Basic polycations activate the insulin receptor kinase and a tightly associated serine kinase.

The effects of cationic polyamino acids on phosphorylation of the insulin and insulin-like growth factor 1 receptor kinases were studied and the following observations were made. (a) Polylysine stimulated both tyrosine and serine phosphorylation of the insulin receptor and of additional proteins present in lectin-purified membrane preparations from rat liver. (b) Polylysine synergized with insulin to enhance phosphorylation of the insulin receptor and of additional proteins (pp40 and pp110). (c) Polylysine effects were more pronounced upon increasing the polylysine chain length. (d) The effect of polylysine was biphasic with an optimum at 100 micrograms/ml. (e) Polylysine was found ineffective in stimulating the phosphorylation of immobilized insulin receptors. Taken together, these findings support the notion that the action of polylysine involves conformational changes and presumably aggregation of soluble receptors. The same effects of polylysine were obtained with highly purified insulin receptor preparations. Under these conditions polylysine enhanced both serine and tyrosine phosphorylation of the insulin receptor, suggesting that polylysine stimulates the activity of the insulin receptor kinase, and of a serine kinase that is tightly associated with the insulin receptor.