Inositol 1,3,4-trisphosphate (Ins(1,3,4)P3) metabolism has been studied in liver homogenates and in 100,000 x g supernatant and particulate fractions. When liver homogenates were incubated in an "intracellular" medium containing 5 mM MgATP, equal proportions of Ins(1,3,4)P3 were dephosphorylated and phosphorylated. Two inositol tetrakisphosphate (InsP4) products and an inositol pentakisphosphate (InsP5) were detected. The InsP4 isomers were unequivocally identified as inositol 1,3,4,5-tetrakisphosphate (Ins(1,3,4,5)P4) and inositol 1,3,4,6-tetrakisphosphate (Ins(1,3,4,6)P4) by high performance liquid chromatography separation of inositol phosphates, periodate oxidation, alkaline hydrolysis, and stereo-specific polyol dehydrogenase. Ins(1,3,4)P3 5-kinase is a novel enzyme activity and accounted for 16% of the total Ins(1,3,4)P3 phosphorylation. Ins(1,3,4,6)P4 was also shown to be further phosphorylated to inositol 1,3,4,5,6-pentakisphosphate (Ins(1,3,4,5,6)P5) by a kinase not previously known to occur in liver. About 75% of Ins(1,3,4)P3 kinase activities were soluble and were partly purified by anion-exchange fast protein liquid chromatography. The two Ins(1,3,4)P3 kinase activities eluted as a single peak that was well resolved from Ins(1,3,4)P3 phosphatase, Ins(1,3,4,6)P4 5-kinase, and Ins(1,3,4,5)P4 5-phosphatase activities. A further novel observation was that 10 microM Ins(1,3,4,5)P4 inhibited Ins(1,3,4)P3 kinase activities by 60%.