HIF1a is an essential regulator of steroidogenesis in the adrenal gland

Hormones produced by the adrenal cortex are absolutely essential for numerous processes in living animals. Our research group investigated to what extend the central regulators of deprived oxygen, hypoxia inducible factors (HIFs), contribute to this steroidogenesis. For this, we developed a set of new transgenic mouse lines displaying modified HIF1a and HIF2a levels in cortical cells and revealed that HIF1a exclusively regulates the transcription of a majority of enzymes responsible for the production of glucocorticoids and mineralocorticoids as well as a consequent inflection of cytokines in circulation. These novel tools will be helpful to understand how sustained and chronic changes in adrenocortical hormones can impact during health and disease. Overall design: FACS sorted cortical cells from transgenic mice (n=3) versus WT controls (n=3) of different genders