Cited by 100Cancer, Hypoxia, and MetabolismRedox biology and oxidative stressErythropoietin and Anemia Treatment

Oxygen versus Reactive Oxygen in the Regulation of HIF-1α: The Balance Tips

Open access
Hagen, Thilo·2012·Biochemistry Research International

Abstract

Hypoxia inducible factor (HIF) is known as the master regulator of the cellular response to hypoxia and is of pivotal importance during development as well as in human disease, particularly in cancer. It is composed of a constitutively expressed β subunit (HIF-1 β) and an oxygen-regulated α subunit (HIF-1 α and HIF-2 α), whose stability is tightly controlled by a family of oxygen- and iron-dependent prolyl hydroxylase enzymes. Whether or not mitochondria-derived reactive oxygen species (ROS) are involved in the regulation of Hypoxia Inducible Factor-1 α has been a matter of contention for the last 10 years, with equally compelling evidence in favor and against their contribution. A number of recent papers appear to tip the balance against a role for ROS. Thus, it has been demonstrated that HIF prolyl hydroxylases are unlikely to be physiological targets of ROS and that the increase in ROS that is associated with downregulation of Thioredoxin Reductase in hypoxia does not affect HIF-1 α stabilization. Finally, the protein CHCHD4, which modulates cellular HIF-1 α concentrations by promoting mitochondrial electron transport chain activity, has been proposed to exert its regulatory effect by affecting cellular oxygen availability. These reports are consistent with the hypothesis that mitochondria play a critical role in the regulation of HIF-1 α by controlling intracellular oxygen concentrations.

The claims and statistics of this paper haven’t been checked yet.

Run the check — free, no account needed. It reads the open-access text and checks the sources it cites.

A few free checks a day · papers already verified open instantly · results are public

Integrity signals

Registry

Crossref · 10.1155/2012/436981

Cites

36 of 36 references verified0 citation errors · 0 not checkable

Statistics

Claims the paper makes

The claims and statistics of this paper haven’t been checked yet.

Run the check — free, no account needed. It reads the open-access text and checks the sources it cites.

A few free checks a day · papers already verified open instantly · results are public

Claims other papers make about this one

Each is checked against this paper’s own text: does it say what the citing paper says it does?

  • HIF regulation by ROS is graded and redox-window-dependent, explaining how HIF signaling can be engaged under mild hypoxia or near-normoxic conditions in metabolically active or oncogenically transformed cells, rather than exhibiting a binary oxygen response.

    “Importantly, this regulation is graded and redox-window–dependent, explaining how HIF signaling can be engaged under mild hypoxia or even near-normoxic conditions in metabolically active or oncogenically transformed cells, rather than exhibiting a binary oxygen response [[201], [202], [203], [204]].”

    From HIF inhibition: Current strategies and clinical challenges (2026) · cites this paper as [201]

    Split into 2 atoms — 0 confirmed, 1 partially supported, 1 disputed, 0 misattributed, 0 unverifiable. Expand the claim to see per-atom verdicts.

    Checked by a reasoning model — may be wrong.

    Experimental — accuracy not yet measured
  • These ROS inhibit prolyl hydroxylase (PHD) activity, leading to HIF-α stabilization at oxygen levels well above anoxia.

    “and that these ROS inhibit prolyl hydroxylase (PHD) activity, leading to HIF-α stabilization at oxygen levels well above anoxia.”

    From HIF inhibition: Current strategies and clinical challenges (2026) · cites this paper as [201]

    The Introduction describes ROS inhibition of PHD as a proposed hypothesis, then says the evidence puts that mechanism in doubt: peroxide had only minor effects on HIF-1α prolyl hydroxylation, and mitochondrial superoxide production did not correlate with HIF-1α stability. The paper therefore does not present ROS-driven PHD inhibition as the explanation for stabilization above anoxia. No page number is available in our copy. (LLM, conf=0.90)

    Checked by a reasoning model — may be wrong.

    Experimental — accuracy not yet measured
  • Moderate reductions in oxygen tension increase mitochondrial superoxide and hydrogen peroxide generation, particularly at respiratory complexes I and III.

    “Subsequent studies revealed that moderate reductions in oxygen tension increase mitochondrial superoxide and hydrogen peroxide generation, particularly at respiratory complexes I and III”

    From HIF inhibition: Current strategies and clinical challenges (2026) · cites this paper as [201]

    The Introduction (page not available in our copy) describes a hypothesis that hypoxia increases superoxide production at complex III, with possible conversion to hydrogen peroxide. It also says there is no consensus on whether hypoxia increases mitochondrial ROS overall and reports decreased superoxide flashes in mild hypoxia. It does not support the claim’s categorical increase or its specific inclusion of complex I. (LLM, conf=0.87)

    Experimental — accuracy not yet measured
  • Mitochondrial ROS production is needed for HIF-1α stabilization even without fully functional oxidative phosphorylation.

    “other studies indicate that mitochondrial reactive ROS production is needed for HIF-1α stabilization, even in the absence of fully functional oxidative phosphorylation [201,376].”

    From HIF inhibition: Current strategies and clinical challenges (2026) · cites this paper as [201]

Self-check

Percentages, sums and reported differences re-computed from the paper’s own numbers.

The self-check needs the paper’s full text.

Cites

Flagged first, then by citations

Cited by

Sorted by citations

Authors
Hagen, T.
Affiliations
National University of Singapore (SG)
Corresponding author
Hagen, Thilo
Venue
Biochemistry Research International
Publisher
Wiley
Published
2012
Volume
2012
Pages
1-5
ISSN
  • 2090-2247 (ISSN-L)
  • 2090-2255
OpenAlex
W1967013639
Cited by
100
References
36
Citations by year
2026: 8 · 2025: 2 · 2024: 7 · 2023: 2 · 2022: 9 · 2021: 3 · 2020: 10 · 2019: 4 · 2018: 10 · 2017: 6 · 2016: 12 · 2015: 11 · 2014: 11 · 2013: 4 · 2012: 1
FWCI
2.87
Type
journal article
Language
en
Open access
Locations
  • Biochemistry Research International (publishedVersion, cc-by)
  • Europe PMC (PubMed Central) (publishedVersion, cc-by)
  • PubMed Central (publishedVersion, cc-by)
  • PubMed (publishedVersion)
  • National University of Singapore (submittedVersion)
  • DOAJ (DOAJ: Directory of Open Access Journals) (submittedVersion, cc-by-sa)
Topics
  • Life Sciences › Biochemistry, Genetics and Molecular Biology › Cancer Research › Cancer, Hypoxia, and Metabolism
  • Life Sciences › Biochemistry, Genetics and Molecular Biology › Molecular Biology › Redox biology and oxidative stress
  • Health Sciences › Medicine › Hematology › Erythropoietin and Anemia Treatment
Keywords
hypoxia-inducible factor-1α, reactive oxygen species, mitochondrial reactive oxygen species, prolyl hydroxylase, HIF-1α stabilization, hypoxia, thioredoxin reductase, CHCHD4, mitochondrial electron transport chain, HIF-2α

About these checks

Registry, retraction, Cites and statistics results are computed, not judged, with one exception: a printed reference that no index lists is read once by a model before it counts as a citation error. Claims are extracted by a model and kept only when their quote appears verbatim in the text; each cited source is then checked, with a model’s help, for whether it says what the claim relies on. Those verdicts can be wrong — read the claim’s quote and the cited source before relying on one.

Statistics and arithmetic are recomputed, not judged.

Confidence bands are shown only for fields calibrated on our annotated test set. None is calibrated yet, so no band is shown.

What counts as a claim ›How we measure confidence ›How we check this ›

Are you an author, or do you see a problem with this page? Request a review