Protein / target
Prolyl hydroxylase EGLN3
Protein at a glance
Biological role
Hypoxia-inducible factor-proline dioxygenase
Strongest disease association
Eye Diseases
Therapeutic position
Established drug target
Derived from structured UniProt, Open Targets and literature data on this page.
Protein profile
Canonical identity and biological annotation from UniProt.
Function overview
Prolyl hydroxylase that mediates hydroxylation of proline residues in target proteins, such as PKM, TELO2, ATF4, GPX4 and HIF1A.
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Prolyl hydroxylase that mediates hydroxylation of proline residues in target proteins, such as PKM, TELO2, ATF4, GPX4 and HIF1A (PubMed:19584355, PubMed:20978507, PubMed:21483450, PubMed:21575608, PubMed:21620138, PubMed:22797300, PubMed:40281343). Target proteins are preferentially recognized via a LXXLAP motif. Cellular oxygen sensor that catalyzes, under normoxic conditions, the post-translational formation of 4-hydroxyproline in hypoxia-inducible factor (HIF) alpha proteins (PubMed:11595184, PubMed:12181324). Hydroxylates a specific proline found in each of the oxygen-dependent degradation (ODD) domains (N-terminal, NODD, and C-terminal, CODD) of HIF1A (PubMed:11595184, PubMed:12181324). Also hydroxylates HIF2A (PubMed:11595184, PubMed:12181324). Has a preference for the CODD site for both HIF1A and HIF2A (PubMed:11595184, PubMed:12181324). Hydroxylation on the NODD site by EGLN3 appears to require prior hydroxylation on the CODD site (PubMed:11595184, PubMed:12181324). Hydroxylated HIFs are then targeted for proteasomal degradation via the von Hippel-Lindau ubiquitination complex (PubMed:11595184, PubMed:12181324). Under hypoxic conditions, the hydroxylation reaction is attenuated allowing HIFs to escape degradation resulting in their translocation to the nucleus, heterodimerization with HIF1B, and increased expression of hypoxy-inducible genes (PubMed:11595184, PubMed:12181324). Acts as an inhibitor of ferroptosis by mediating hydroxylation of GPX4, thereby preventing GPX4 degradation via chaperone-mediated autophagy (PubMed:40281343). GPX4 hydroxylation is promoted by PSAT1, which provides 2-oxoglutarate substrate to EGLN3 (PubMed:40281343). ELGN3 is the most important isozyme in limiting physiological activation of HIFs (particularly HIF2A) in hypoxia. Also hydroxylates PKM in hypoxia, limiting glycolysis (PubMed:21483450, PubMed:21620138). Under normoxia, hydroxylates and regulates the stability of ADRB2 (PubMed:19584355). Regulator of cardiomyocyte and neuronal apoptosis. In cardiomyocytes, inhibits the anti-apoptotic effect of BCL2 by disrupting the BAX-BCL2 complex (PubMed:20849813). In neurons, has a NGF-induced proapoptotic effect, probably through regulating CASP3 activity (PubMed:16098468). Also essential for hypoxic regulation of neutrophilic inflammation (PubMed:21317538). Plays a crucial role in DNA damage response (DDR) by hydroxylating TELO2, promoting its interaction with ATR which is required for activation of the ATR/CHK1/p53 pathway (PubMed:22797300). Also mediates hydroxylation of ATF4, leading to decreased protein stability of ATF4 (Probable)
Subcellular location
Domains and Gene Ontology detail (17)Hide
Domains & features
Gene Ontology
- Ccytoplasm
- Ccytosol
- Cnucleoplasm
- Cnucleus
- F2-oxoglutarate-dependent dioxygenase activity
- Fferrous iron binding
- Fhypoxia-inducible factor-proline dioxygenase activity
- FL-ascorbic acid binding
- Fpeptidyl-proline 4-dioxygenase activity
- Papoptotic process
- Pcellular response to hypoxia
- PDNA damage response
Biological roles
What this protein does, drawn together from its UniProt function, Gene Ontology terms and Reactome pathways.
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Apoptosis & cell death
- ·apoptotic process
- ·regulation of neuron apoptotic process
Concepts derived from UniProt GO Reactome — each badge above shows which sources supported that role.
Approved medicines with mapped indications
Approved therapies targeting this protein, grouped by what they are approved to treat — the disease-first view of the medicines below. Relationships come from the canonical approved-indication graph (ChEMBL phase-4), the same source as the drug cards.
4 medicines meet Open Targets' target-level approved-medicine definition; the 2 shown here are those on this page with a canonical approved disease indication in the graph. Approved indications from ChEMBL (phase-4), via the canonical drug→disease graph.
Drugs targeting this protein
How approved and investigational drugs engage this protein — mechanism and action type, direct vs complex targeting, and how broadly each acts across other targets. A drug-first view (the section above groups the approved ones disease-first); direct binders with few recorded targets are listed first.
Egl nine homolog 3 inhibitor
Indicated for Anemia, Renal Insufficiency, Chronic
Hypoxia-inducible factor prolyl hydroxylase inhibitor
Indicated for Anemia, Kidney Failure, Chronic
ChEMBL mechanism, action type, target identity and approved indications. Open Targets clinical status.
Translational evidence
Why this target matters therapeutically, strongest evidence first. Disease associations are gene-level (via the gene that encodes this protein) and open into the full confidence synthesis; the development universe, tractability and safety annotations are target-level, from Open Targets.
Strongest disease associations · via encoding gene EGLN3
Gene-level evidence surfaced through the gene EGLN3that encodes this protein — not a direct protein–disease relationship. Ranked by Forefront's causal-directness weighting, so genetically- and clinically-evidenced diseases lead over ones that merely share the literature.
View evidence synthesis (5)Hide
The evidence agreement range shows how closely the independent evidence families agree — it is not a statistical confidence interval, and nothing here is fitted to outcome data. Derived from Open Targets evidence types under Forefront weighting; the per-type scores above show the calculation.
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Drug development
4 compounds recorded · 4 approved
View all recorded compounds (4)Hide
Open Targets known-drugs universe. Drug name and highest clinical stage only — the disease relationship is NOT read from this slice (it carries trial-context noise); approved indications come from the canonical graph above.
Tractability
Small molecules — Strong
Protein degraders — Emerging
View underlying tractability evidence (6)Hide
Raw Open Targets tractability assessment buckets, by modality.
Clinical trials
Trials of drugs that target this protein — reached indirectly through those drugs, so a trial listed here studies the drug, not the protein. Ranked by active status, then clinical phase and recency, and spread across the targeting drugs.
View all trials (26)Hide
ClinicalTrials.gov via the drug-target graph.
What's happening now
Recent therapeutic activity around this target — regulatory actions, clinical trials and safety signals for 2 drugs that target this protein, plus publications where such a drug is a genuine subject. Every item is reached indirectly through the drug, not the protein itself; incidental mentions (a paper that merely measures a drug) and press items are excluded.
- Regulatory approval
Approval: Vafseo (EMA)
- Regulatory approval
Approval: Evrenzo (EMA)
Objective event titles are shown unmodified; the event kind and significance line are derived from structured fields. Forefront AttentionEvent stream aggregating Europe PMC Regulatory filings ClinicalTrials.gov.