Purification and properties of cAMP independent glycogen synthase kinase and phosvitin kinase from human leukocytes.

cAMP independent glycogen synthase kinase and phosvitin kinase activity was purified from the 180 000 x g supernatant of human polymorphonuclear leukocytes by ammonium sulphate precipitation and phosphocellulose chromatography. The cAMP independent glycogen synthase kinase eluted from the phosphocellulose at 0.54 M NaCl (peak A) separate from the major phosvitin kinase eluting at 0.68 M NaCl (peak B). The kinase activity of both peaks tended to form aggregates, but in the presence of 0.6 M NaCl, the peak B enzyme had Mr 250 000, 7.2S and the peak A enzyme Mr 38 000, 3.8S. The ratio between synthase kinase and phosvitin kinase activity in peak A was 1:3.2 and in peak B 1:31.4. In addition the kinase activities differed with respect to sensitivity to temperature, ionic strength and CaCl2. It is suggested that the peak A enzyme represents the cAMP independent glycogen synthase kinase of leukocytes, whereas the peak B enzyme is a phosvitin kinase, which is insignificantly contaminated with some synthase kinase (peak A) and contains a separate, second synthase kinase. Synthase kinase had Kmapp 4.2 microM for muscle glycogen synthease I and Kmapp 45 microM for ATP. GTP was a poor substrate. The activity was not influenced by cyclic nucleotides, Ca2+, or glucose-6-P. Synthase I from muscle and leukocytes was phosphorylated to a ratio of independence of less than 0.05.