The delta-subspecies of protein kinase C (PKC) was purified to near homogeneity from the Triton X-100 extract of the rat brain particulate fraction by successive chromatographies on S-Sepharose Fast Flow, Phenyl 5PW, Heparin 5PW, hydroxyapatite, and Mono Q columns. The purified enzyme was doublet with molecular weight of 78 kDa and 76 kDa on SDS-PAGE. This doublet proteins were separated partially by Mono Q column chromatography, both of which were recognized by the antibodies raised against synthetic oligopeptides, parts of the deduced amino acid sequence of the rat delta PKC. Protein phosphatase 2A treatment suggested that the 78 kDa protein was a phosphorylated form of the 76 kDa protein. To confirm the structural and genetic identity of the doublet proteins, delta PKC was expressed in COS 7 cells by transfecting its cDNA-constructed plasmid, and was purified for comparison. This recombinant enzyme was also doublet. The enzymes isolated from the brain and COS 7 cells showed identical reactivities with delta PKC-specific antibodies, chromatographic behaviors, and V8 protease peptide mapping. In addition, these the enzyme preparations were indistinguishable from each other in their responses to phosphatidylserine, diacylglycerol, phorbol esters, free fatty acids, and Ca2+. Comparison was also made between the enzymological properties of delta PKC and alpha PKC, such as activation kinetics, sensitivity to protein kinase inhibitors and substrate specificity which were distinctly different from each other.