Maximal protein kinase C activity with vesicles of phosphatidic acid and 1,2-di0leoyl-~sn-glycerol is observed in the absence of added Ca2 '. Addition of phosphatidylcholine to these vesicles restores some calcium dependence of enzyme activity. 1,2-Dioleoyl-sn-glycerol eliminates the Ca2 +-dependence of protein kinase C activity found with phosphatidic acid alone. Phorbol esters do not mimic the action of 1,2-dioleoyl-sn-glyceroI in this respect. This suggests that the 1,2-dioleoyl-sn-glycerol effect is a result of changes it causes in the physical properties of the membrane rather than to specific binding to the enzyme. The effect of 1,2-dioleoyl-.~n-glycerol on the phosphatidic-acid-stimulated protein kinase C activity is dependent on the molar Craction of 1,2-dioleoyl-sn-glycerol used and results in a gradual shift from Ca2+ stimulation at low 1,2-dioleoyl-sn-glycerol concentrations to calcium inhibition at higher concentrations of 1,2-dioleoyl-sn-glycerol. Phosphatidylserine-stimulated activity is also shown to be largely independent of the calcium concentration at higher molar fractions of 1,2-dioleoyl-sn-glycerol. Thus, with certain lipid compositions, protein kinase C activity becomes independent of the calcium concentration or requires only very low, stoichiometric binding of Ca2 + to high affinity sites on the enzyme.Protein kinase C can bind to phosphatidic acid vesicles more readily than it can bind to phosphatidylserine vesicles in the absence of calcium. Addition of 1,2-dioleoyl-sn-glycerol to phosphatidylserine vesicles promotes the partitioning of protein kinase C into the membrane in the absence of added Ca2 ' . There is no isozyme specificity in this binding. These results suggest that a less-tightly packed headgroup region of the bilayer causes increased insertion of protein kinase C into the membrane. This is a necessary but not sufficient condition for activation of the enzyme in the presence of EGTA.Protein kinase C (PKC) plays an important role in cell regulation and is the receptor for the phorbol ester tumor promoters. This protein kinase was first identified as a calcium-dependent and phospholipid-dependent enzyme [ l]. The phospholipid requirement for the enzyme is specific for anionic lipids with phosphatidylserine being most effective [2] but phosphatidic acid [2 -41, cardiolipin [3] and phosphatidylinositol [2] are also active. Calcium binds to PKC only in the presence of phospholipid [5] and the binding affinity for Ca2+ is increased with more phosphatidylserine in the membrane [6]. Diacylglycerols markedly increase the sensitivity of PKC to activation by Ca2+ in the presence of phospholipid [7]. In contrast to phosphatidylserine, we find that addition of 1,2-dioleoyl-sn-glycerol (Ole,Gro) to phosphatidic acid causes a calcium-induced inhibition, rather than activation, of the Correspondence to