Enhanced hypoxia-inducible factor (HIF)-1α stability induced by 5-hydroxymethyl-2-furfural (5-HMF) contributes to protection against hypoxia.

Abstract

We first reported the role of 5-hydroxymethyl-2-furfural (5-HMF) against hypoxia. Here, we studied the mechanism by using oxygen-dependent degradation domain (ODD)-Luc mice, which are a useful model to probe the stabilization of hypoxia-inducible factor 1α (HIF-1α). Compared with three other compounds that have been reported to have a role in stabilizing HIF-1α, 5-HMF caused stronger bioluminescence, which is indicative of HIF-1α stability in the brain and kidney of ODD-Luc mice. We further demonstrated that the HIF-1α protein accumulated in response to 5-HMF in the brains and kidneys of these mice, as well as in PC12 cells. Additionally, 5-HMF promoted the nuclear translocation of HIF-1α and the transcriptional activity of HIF-1, which was evaluated by detecting vascular endothelial growth factor (VEGF ) mRNA expression. These results suggest that 5-HMF stabilized HIF-1α and increased its activity. Considering the role of proline hydroxylases (PHDs) in negatively regulating HIF-1α stability, we explored whether 5-HMF interacts with the substrates and cofactors of PHDs, such as 2-oxoglutarate (2-OG), Fe(2+) and vitamin C (VC), which affects the activity of PHDs. The result revealed that 5-HMF did not interact with Fe(2+) or 2-OG but interacted with VC. This interaction was confirmed by subsequent experiments, in which 5-HMF entered into cells and reduced the VC content. The enhanced stability of HIF-1α by 5-HMF was reversed by VC supplementation, and the improved survival of mice caused by 5-HMF under hypoxia was abrogated by VC supplementation. Thus, we demonstrated for the first time that 5-HMF increases HIF-1α stability by reducing the VC content, which mediates the protection against hypoxia.

• Authors: Yun-Ling He, Ming-Ming Li, Li-Ying Wu, Tong Zhao, Yao Di, Xin Huang, Xue-Feng Ding, Kui-Wu Wu, Ming Fan, Ling-Ling Zhu
• Journal: Molecular medicine (Cambridge, Mass.) (Mol Med) Vol. 20 Pg. 590-600 (Feb 23 2015) ISSN: 1528-3658 [Electronic] England
• PMID: 25333920 (Publication Type: Journal Article, Research Support, Non-U.S. Gov't)

Chemical References

• Hypoxia-Inducible Factor 1, alpha Subunit
• Ketoglutaric Acids
• Protective Agents
• 5-hydroxymethylfurfural
• Furaldehyde
• Luciferases, Firefly
• Ascorbic Acid

Topics

• Animals
• Ascorbic Acid (pharmacology)
• Brain (drug effects, metabolism)
• Furaldehyde (analogs & derivatives, pharmacology)
• Hypoxia (metabolism)
• Hypoxia-Inducible Factor 1, alpha Subunit (genetics, metabolism)
• Ketoglutaric Acids (pharmacology)
• Kidney (drug effects, metabolism)
• Luciferases, Firefly (genetics)
• Mice, Inbred C57BL
• Mice, Transgenic
• PC12 Cells
• Protective Agents (pharmacology)
• Protein Structure, Tertiary (genetics)
• Rats