The hypoxia-inducible factor HIF as a new target in cancer research

The vascular endothelial growth factors (VEGF) plays major roles during tumor development: VEGF expression is regulated by the transcription factor HIF (hypoxia inducible factor) which is very sensitive to oxygene variations. We will show here that HIFIalpha is today a good prognostic and diagnostic marker for an increasing number of cancers from various origins. Furthermore, the reduction of the expression or the activity of HIFIalpha impairs tumour angiogenesis and subsequently growth. Altogether, these results suggest that HIFIalpha could be an interesting target in cancer therapy.