The present study examines the expression and involvement of cAMP-dependent protein kinase (PKA) isozymes in cAMP-induced inhibition of natural killer (NK) cell-mediated cytotoxicity. Rat interleukin-2-activated NK cells express the PKA ␣-isoforms RI␣, RII␣, and C␣ and contain both PKA type I and type II. Prostaglandin E 2 , forskolin, and cAMP analogs all inhibit NK cell lysis of major histocompatibility complex class I mismatched allogeneic lymphocytes as well as of standard tumor target cells. Specific involvement of PKA in the cAMP-induced inhibition of NK cell cytotoxicity is demonstrated by the ability of a cAMP antagonist, (R p )-8-Br-adenosine 3 ,5 -cyclic monophosphorothioate, to reverse the inhibitory effect of complementary cAMP agonist (S p )-8-Br-adenosine 3 ,5 -cyclic monophosphorothioate. Furthermore, the use of cAMP analog pairs selective for either PKA isozyme (PKA type I or PKA type II), shows a preferential involvement of the PKA type I isozyme, indicating that PKA type I is necessary and sufficient to completely abolish killer activatory signaling leading to NK cell cytotoxicity. Finally, combined treatment with phorbol ester and ionomycin maintains NK cell cytotoxicity and eliminates the cAMP-mediated inhibition, demonstrating that protein kinase C and Ca 2؉ -dependent events stimulate the cytolytic activity of NK cells at a site distal to the site of cAMP/PKA action.Natural killer (NK) 1 cells constitute a distinct lineage of lymphocytes (1) with the innate ability to specifically recognize and kill certain normal allogeneic leukocytes (2, 3), tumor cells, and virally infected cells (4, 5) by direct cell-mediated cytotoxicity. The presence of both activating and inhibitory NK cell receptors have been implicated in regulation of NK cytolysis. As formulated in the "missing self" hypothesis (6), a no-kill signal is induced by specific interaction of "self" MHC class I molecules with inhibitory NK receptors. Therefore, the presence of intracellular signaling pathways down-regulating or inhibiting the cytotoxic response may be important in preventing killing of normal autologous cells. In contrast to the "self" MHC class I-induced inhibition of natural killing, activating receptors have not been characterized to the same extent. However, both foreign MHC antigens on normal allogeneic cells and non-MHC antigens expressed on tumor cells have been demonstrated to interact with yet not fully characterized activating NK cell receptors (7-10). The present view is that NK cytotoxicity is a result of a fine balance between negative and positive signals induced through distinct sets of receptors inhibiting or activating the cytolytic activity (11).The second messenger cAMP regulates a number of cellular processes (12, 13). With the exception of certain ion channels, directly regulated by cAMP (14, 15), all known effects of cAMP are mediated via activation of cAMP-dependent protein kinase (PKA). The inactive PKA holoenzyme is a tetramer consisting of two regulatory (R) and two catalytic (C) subunits (16)....