HomeAboutRankingsData Sources
© 2026 GeneE
🧬
GeneE
10 sources retrieved · Most recent: April 2026 · Index updated 14 days ago
ⓘGeneE is for informational purposes only. It is not a substitute for professional medical advice, diagnosis, or treatment.
ULK3
unc-51 like kinase 3
Chromosome 15 · 15q24.1
NCBI Gene: 25989Ensembl: ENSG00000140474.15HGNC: HGNC:19703UniProt: B4DDG2
41PubMed Papers
20Diseases
0Drugs
0Pathogenic Variants
FUNCTIONAL ROLE
Kinase
DATA QUALITY
✓ Experimental GO Evidence✓ Swiss-Prot Reviewed
smoothened signaling pathwayprotein bindingcytoplasmprotein serine/threonine kinase activityAlzheimer diseaseneurodegenerative diseaseParkinson diseaselysosomal storage disease
✦AI Summary

ULK3 is a serine/threonine protein kinase with diverse cellular regulatory functions. Mechanistically, ULK3 acts as a bifunctional regulator of Sonic hedgehog (SHH) signaling: it negatively regulates SHH signaling by binding SUFU to prevent GLI phosphorylation in the absence of SHH ligand, while positively regulating it upon SHH presence through autophosphorylation and GLI2 activation 1. Beyond hedgehog signaling, ULK3 regulates cytokinetic abscission by phosphorylating ESCRT-III proteins, particularly IST1, thereby controlling the abscission checkpoint in response to chromosome 15 and midbody tension 2. Additionally, ULK3 promotes autophagy following cellular senescence. Disease relevance emerges from ULK3's elevated expression in squamous cell carcinomas, where it controls keratinocyte proliferation through regulating histone arginine methyltransferases PRMT1/5 3. In breast cancer, elevated ULK3 expression associates with prolonged recurrence-free survival and inhibits cell proliferation 4. Clinically significant associations were identified through Mendelian randomization linking ULK3 gene expression to breast cancer risk 5. The ULK3 kinase domain exhibits high druggability and conformational plasticity, making it amenable to small-molecule inhibition 6. These findings suggest ULK3 represents a promising therapeutic target across multiple cancer types.

Sources cited
1
ULK3 regulates GLI phosphorylation in both positive and negative modes of SHH signaling
PMID: 35186941
2
ULK3 phosphorylates ESCRT-III proteins and controls the cytokinetic abscission checkpoint
PMID: 26011858
3
ULK3 is elevated in squamous cell carcinomas and regulates keratinocyte proliferation via PRMT1/5
PMID: 36797248
4
Elevated ULK3 expression in breast cancer associates with prolonged recurrence-free survival and inhibits cell proliferation
PMID: 40234727
5
ULK3 gene expression identified as genetically associated with breast cancer risk through Mendelian randomization
PMID: 38251461
6
ULK3 kinase domain exhibits high druggability and conformational plasticity
PMID: 34190988
Disease Associationsⓘ20
Alzheimer diseaseOpen Targets
0.30Weak
lysosomal storage diseaseOpen Targets
0.29Weak
multiple sclerosisOpen Targets
0.29Weak
neurodegenerative diseaseOpen Targets
0.29Weak
Parkinson diseaseOpen Targets
0.29Weak
COVID-19Open Targets
0.17Weak
osteoarthritisOpen Targets
0.16Weak
hypertensionOpen Targets
0.16Weak
breast cancerOpen Targets
0.14Weak
alcohol drinkingOpen Targets
0.11Weak
neoplasmOpen Targets
0.08Suggestive
squamous cell carcinomaOpen Targets
0.08Suggestive
Miyoshi myopathyOpen Targets
0.08Suggestive
Testicular regression syndromeOpen Targets
0.05Suggestive
hypertension, pregnancy-inducedOpen Targets
0.05Suggestive
response to xenobiotic stimulusOpen Targets
0.04Suggestive
46,XX ovotesticular disorder of sex developmentOpen Targets
0.04Suggestive
Leydig cell hypoplasiaOpen Targets
0.04Suggestive
testicular agenesisOpen Targets
0.04Suggestive
essential hypertensionOpen Targets
0.04Suggestive
Pathogenic Variants
No pathogenic variants reported on ClinVar for this gene.
View on ClinVar ↗
Related Genes
BECN1Protein interaction100%ATG16L1Protein interaction100%ATG101Protein interaction100%SUFUProtein interaction100%PIK3C3Protein interaction99%PIK3R4Protein interaction99%
Tissue Expression6 tissues
Liver
100%
Lung
74%
Heart
71%
Bone Marrow
68%
Ovary
67%
Brain
24%
Gene Interaction Network
Click a node to explore
ULK3BECN1ATG16L1ATG101SUFUPIK3C3PIK3R4
PROTEIN STRUCTURE
Preparing viewer…
PDB4WZX · 1.39 Å · X-ray
View on RCSB ↗
Constraintⓘ
LOEUFⓘ
1.16LoF Tolerant
pLIⓘ
0.00Tolerant
Observed/Expected LoF0.93 [0.74–1.16]
RankingsWhere ULK3 stands among ~20K protein-coding genes
  • #10,109of 20,598
    Most Researched41
  • #12,131of 17,882
    Most Constrained (LOEUF)1.16
Genes detectedULK3
Sources retrieved10 papers
Response time—
📄 Sources
10▼
1
Identifying actionable druggable targets for breast cancer: Mendelian randomization and population-based analyses.
PMID: 38251461
EBioMedicine · 2023
1.00
2
The ULK3 kinase is a determinant of keratinocyte self-renewal and tumorigenesis targeting the arginine methylome.
PMID: 36797248
Nat Commun · 2023
0.90
3
Conformational plasticity of the ULK3 kinase domain.
PMID: 34190988
Biochem J · 2021
0.80
4
Genetic associations of plasma proteins and breast cancer identify potential therapeutic drug candidates.
PMID: 40234727
Commun Biol · 2025
0.70
5
Characterization of Protein Kinase ULK3 Regulation by Phosphorylation and Inhibition by Small Molecule SU6668.
PMID: 30096229
Biochemistry · 2018
0.60