Hypoxia-inducible factors in OSCC

Oral squamous cell carcinoma (OSCC) is a characteristic locally aggressive tumor in which hypoxia levels are very high, causing a low response to chemotherapy and providing basic resistance to anticancer drugs. Tumoral hypoxia directly depends on hypoxia-inducible factors (HIF). The goal of this paper is to describe HIF basic biology and tumor cells (HIF-1α, mainly), analyzing the effects of its expression in OSCC, study its relation with other molecules such as nitric oxide (NO), carbonic anhydrase (CA) or VEGF and assess the possibility of its manipulation as a therapeutic target.

► OSCCs are locally aggressive tumors showing high hypoxia levels.
► High hypoxia causes basic resistance to chemotherapy and other anticancer drugs.
► Tumor hypoxia depends directly on HIFs.
► Analyzing HIF expression in OSCC could determine its viability as therapeutic target.