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Review
. 2020 Apr 8:10:486.
doi: 10.3389/fonc.2020.00486. eCollection 2020.

Hypoxia-Induced Epithelial-Mesenchymal Transition in Cancers: HIF-1α and Beyond

Shing Yau Tam  1 , Vincent W C Wu  1 , Helen K W Law  1
Affiliations
Review

Hypoxia-Induced Epithelial-Mesenchymal Transition in Cancers: HIF-1α and Beyond

Shing Yau Tam et al. Front Oncol. .

Abstract

Metastasis is the main cause of cancer-related mortality. Although the actual process of metastasis remains largely elusive, epithelial-mesenchymal transition (EMT) has been considered as a major event in metastasis. Besides, hypoxia is common in solid cancers and has been considered as an important factor for adverse treatment outcomes including metastasis. Since EMT and hypoxia potentially share several signaling pathways, many recent studies focused on investigate the issue of hypoxia-induced EMT. Among all potential mediators of hypoxia-induced EMT, hypoxia-inducible factor-1α (HIF-1α) has been studied extensively. Moreover, there are other potential mediators that may also contribute to the process. This review aims to summarize the recent reports on hypoxia-induced EMT by HIF-1α or other potential mediators and provide insights for further investigations on this issue. Ultimately, better understanding of hypoxia-induced EMT may allow us to develop anti-metastatic strategies and improve treatment outcomes.

Keywords: HIF-1α; cancer; epithelial-mesenchymal transition; hypoxia; metastasis; signaling pathway.

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Figures

Figure 1
Figure 1
HIF-1α mediated EMT. HIF-1α promotes EMT induction in various cancer types by multiple ways. Various pathways promote EMT induction, resulting in loss of cell-cell adhesion and dynamic actin reorganization.
Figure 2
Figure 2
Hypoxia-induced Non-HIF EMT pathways. Apart from HIF-1α, there are several potential hypoxia-induced pathways for EMT induction.
See this image and copyright information in PMC

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