Hypoxia-inducible factors (HIFs) are transcription factors critical for the adaptive response to hypoxia. There is also an essential link between hypoxia and inflammation, and HIFs have been implicated in the dysregulated immune response to various insults. Despite the prevalence of hypoxia in tissue trauma, especially involving the lungs, there remains a dearth of studies investigating the role of HIFs in clinically relevant injury models. Here, we summarize the effects of HIF-1α on the vasculature, metabolism, inflammation, and apoptosis in the lungs and review the role of HIFs in direct lung injuries, including lung contusion, acid aspiration, pneumonia, and COVID-19. We present data that implicates HIF-1α in the context of arguments both in favor and against its role as adaptive or injurious in the propagation of the acute inflammatory response in lung injuries. Finally, we discuss the potential for pharmacological modulation of HIFs as a new class of therapeutics in the modern intensive care unit.
Keyphrases
- endothelial cells
- oxidative stress
- intensive care unit
- inflammatory response
- transcription factor
- sars cov
- liver failure
- endoplasmic reticulum stress
- respiratory failure
- spinal cord
- small molecule
- risk factors
- ultrasound guided
- mechanical ventilation
- hepatitis b virus
- cell proliferation
- cell cycle arrest
- signaling pathway
- drug induced
- immune response
- toll like receptor
- extracorporeal membrane oxygenation
- pi k akt
- acute respiratory distress syndrome
- respiratory syndrome coronavirus
- artificial intelligence
- community acquired pneumonia