Transfection of airway epithelial cells with HIF-1α siRNA suppressed VEGF expression. In addition, the increased levels of HIF-1α and VEGF in lung tissues after OVA inhalation were substantially decreased by an HIF-1α inhibitor, 2-methoxyestradiol. Our data also show that the increased numbers of inflammatory cells, increased airway hyperresponsiveness, levels of IL-4, IL-5, IL-13, and vascular permeability in the

lungs after OVA inhalation were significantly reduced by 2-methoxyestradiol or a VEGF inhibitor, CBO-P11. Moreover, we found that inhibition of the PI3K p110δ isoform (PI3K-δ) or HIF-1α reduced OVA-induced HIF-1α activation in airway epithelial cells. These findings indicate GPCR Compound Library that HIF-1α inhibition may attenuate antigen-induced airway inflammation and hyperresponsiveness through the modulation of vascular leakage mediated by VEGF, and that PI3K-δ signaling may be involved in the allergen-induced HIF-1α activation. Bronchial asthma is a chronic inflammatory disease of the airways that is characterized by airway remodeling with an increased vascular permeability that causes secretion of intravascular components 1. Exudation of plasma proteins into the airways contributes to airway obstruction and hyperresponsiveness 2, 3. Studies have also revealed prominent increases in blood vessel numbers, size, vascular surface click here area, and

vascular leakage, and shown a close correlation between such alterations and disease severity in asthma 3, 4. Hypoxia-inducible factor-1 (HIF-1) is a transcriptional activator that mediates gene expression in response to cellular oxygen concentrations 5. HIF-1 is composed of two subunits, HIF-1α and HIF-1β. While the β-subunit protein is constitutively expressed, the stability of the α-subunit and its transcriptional activity are controlled by the intracellular oxygen concentration 6. In addition to the oxygen-dependent regulation of HIF-1α activity, several reports have demonstrated that HIF-1α expression is regulated

by a variety of cytokines and growth factors via oxygen independent pathways 7. HIF-1α has been reported to play an important role in inflammatory 2-hydroxyphytanoyl-CoA lyase responses 8, 9. Upon activation, HIF-1α is known to stimulate the expression of genes that promote angiogenesis, vasodilation, vascular permeability, and glucose uptake 10. In addition to HIF-1α, three HIF-α isoforms have been identified to date with an obvious tissue-restricted expression pattern. Unlike HIF-1α, which is ubiquitinously expressed in organisms, HIF-2α and HIF-3α, which share pronounced sequence homology with HIF-1α 11–13, are restricted to specific tissues 14, 15. One of the genes whose expression is regulated by HIF-1α is vascular endothelial growth factor (VEGF), an endothelial cell-specific mitogenic peptide, which plays a key role in vasculogenesis and angiogenesis 16. VEGF also increases vascular permeability and leads to airway inflammation 3, 17.