Review Series 10.1172/JCI137553

Hypoxia-inducible factors and innate immunity in liver cancer

Vincent Wai-Hin Yuen1 and Carmen Chak-Lui Wong1,2

1Department of Pathology and

2State Key Laboratory of Liver Research, University of Hong Kong, Hong Kong, China.

Address correspondence to: Carmen Chak-Lui Wong, Department of Pathology, State Key Laboratory of Liver Research, University of Hong Kong, T810, Block T, Queen Mary Hospital, Pokfulam, Hong Kong, China. Phone: 852.2255.2689; Email: carmencl@pathology.hku.hk.

Find articles by Yuen, V. in: JCI | PubMed | Google Scholar |

1Department of Pathology and

2State Key Laboratory of Liver Research, University of Hong Kong, Hong Kong, China.

Address correspondence to: Carmen Chak-Lui Wong, Department of Pathology, State Key Laboratory of Liver Research, University of Hong Kong, T810, Block T, Queen Mary Hospital, Pokfulam, Hong Kong, China. Phone: 852.2255.2689; Email: carmencl@pathology.hku.hk.

Find articles by Wong, C. in: JCI | PubMed | Google Scholar

First published August 4, 2020 - More info

J Clin Invest. https://doi.org/10.1172/JCI137553.
© 2020 American Society for Clinical Investigation
First published August 4, 2020 - Version history

The liver has strong innate immunity to counteract pathogens from the gastrointestinal tract. During the development of liver cancer, which is typically driven by chronic inflammation, the composition and biological roles of the innate immune cells are extensively altered. Hypoxia is a common finding in all stages of liver cancer development. Hypoxia drives the stabilization of hypoxia-inducible factors (HIFs), which act as central regulators to dampen the innate immunity of liver cancer. HIF signaling in innate immune cells and liver cancer cells together favors the recruitment and maintenance of pro-tumorigenic immune cells and the inhibition of anti-tumorigenic immune cells, promoting immune evasion. HIFs represent attractive therapeutic targets to inhibit the formation of an immunosuppressive microenvironment and growth of liver cancer.

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