The present study addresses possible mechanisms through which cAMP mediates its effects on mRNA levels for the subunits of protein kinase A (PKA) and the cellular protooncogene, c-fos. Messenger RNAs for the PKA subunits (RI alpha, RII alpha, RII beta, and C alpha) were regulated by cAMP with similar kinetics in Sertoli cells. However, effects of cAMP on the PKA mRNAs were slow compared to a well characterized cAMP responsive gene, c-fos. The magnitude of stimulation was dramatically different between the various PKA subunits, in that RII beta mRNA increased more than 50-fold while the mRNAs for the other subunits were induced only two to four times. Separation of nuclear and cytoplasmic RNA demonstrated that mRNAs for PKA subunits were stimulated to the same extent in these two cellular compartments. The more rapid induction of c-fos mRNA by cAMP, compared to the mRNA for RII beta, was also seen at the level of transcription. Maximal transcription rate for c-fos, RI alpha, and C alpha were observed after 30 min, whereas that for RII beta was increasing during the 2-h period examined. Transcriptional activation of the RI alpha gene also appeared faster than that for RII beta. When Sertoli cells were incubated with 8-(4-chlorophenylthio) cAMP and cycloheximide, a potent inhibitor of protein synthesis, we observed a super-induction of the mRNAs for c-fos (10-fold) and RI alpha (2-fold).(ABSTRACT TRUNCATED AT 250 WORDS)