Protein kinase C isoform expression in CD45RA+ and CD45RO+ T lymphocytes.

Differences in levels of specific enzymes utilized in intracellular signalling could be a factor in the distinct signalling properties observed in memory and naive T cells. We have studied the expression of both classical and non-classical protein kinase of C (PKC) isoenzymes in CD45RA and CD45RO cells using a combination of Western blot and flow cytometric analysis. These data indicate that CD45RA cells express higher levels of PKC alpha, PKC beta and PKC delta than CD45RO cells. In addition, CD45RA+ cells show greater proliferative activity when stimulated with phorbol myristate acetate (PMA) and calcium ionophore than their CD45RO+ counterparts. Variations in the levels of these isoenzymes could be implicated in functional differences, such as proliferation and cytokine production, in these cell subsets.