Assessment of Stabilization and Activity of the HIFs Important for Hypoxia-Induced Signalling in Cancer Cells

Abstract

Blood vessels in tumors contain chaotic branching structures and leaky vessel lumens, resulting in uneven supply of oxygen in the tumor microenvironment. High metabolic and proliferation rate of tumor cells further depletes the local oxygen supply. Therefore, hypoxia is a common phenomenon in multiple solid malignancies. Hypoxia-inducible factors (HIFs) regulate the transcription of a spectrum of genes, which are vitally important for tumor cell adaption under hypoxia, and shape the tumor microenvironment to become more favorable for progression. HIFs are involved in almost every step of cancer development through inducing angiogenesis, metabolic reprogramming, metastasis, cancer stemness maintenance, chemoresistance, and immune evasion. Here, we describe methods for the assessment of HIF activity, as well as identification of novel transcriptional targets of HIFs in vitro and in vivo.