Polyclonal antibodies to phospholipid/Ca2+-dependent protein kinase and immunocytochemical localization of the enzyme in rat brain.

Antisera against phospholipid/Ca2+-dependent protein kinase (protein kinase C) were raised in rabbits. Immunospecificity of the polyclonal antibodies, as determined by immunoblot and ELISA, was shown by their reactivity to the enzyme but not to other protein kinases or any of many other proteins tested. Immunocytochemical localization of the kinase in rat brains revealed that although the enzyme was distributed broadly in different brain regions, it was highly restricted to the periphery of the nucleus of neurons in cerebral cortex and to axons and cells strongly resembling oligodendroglia in white-matter regions. Initial electron microscopy of cerebral cortex revealed that the enzyme was highly concentrated in the presynaptic terminals, and only rarely were labeled postsynaptic specialization elements seen. It is suggested that the discrete localization of the enzyme, which is distinct from that of the calmodulin/Ca2+-dependent system, may be related to certain biological and functional aspects of brain that are regulated by Ca2+ at the level of protein phosphorylation.