Deletion of KLHDC3, an E3 ubiquitin ligase complex substrate receptor, leads to obesity in mice

Protein ubiquitination is a critical post-translational modification that regulates protein stability and cellular homeostasis. KLHDC3 is a substrate recognition receptor within the recently identified C-terminal degron-mediated DesCEND ubiquitination pathway. It has been characterised to selectively bind proteins with C-terminal RxxxG motifs, targeting them for degradation. Unlike the well-characterised N-terminal degron pathway, the physiological roles of C-terminal degrons remain poorly understood. To investigate KLHDC3 function in vivo, we generated Klhdc3-deficient (Klhdc3-/-) mice. These mice exhibited sub-Mendelian birth rates and progressive postnatal lethality, with a median survival of 136 days and maximum survival observed of ∼1 year of age. Early growth retardation was apparent, followed by a normalisation of body mass with age. However, as Klhdc3-/- mice aged they developed pronounced obesity at the expense of lean mass, with some individuals reaching fat mass exceeding 50% of total body weight. Combined transcriptomic and proteomic analyses of Klhdc3-/- embryonic fibroblasts revealed significant changes in protein expression with minimal impact on transcript levels, consistent with KLHDC3’s role in post-translational regulation. Among the upregulated proteins, HINT1 was identified as a novel KLHDC3 substrate, possessing a C-terminal degron motif. Protein stability assays and immunoblotting confirmed HINT1 as a direct target of KLHDC3. These findings establish a new in vivo physiological role for the DesCEND pathway and highlight KLHDC3 as a key regulator of development, survival, and adiposity in mice.