The magic of the hypoxia-signaling cascade.

All organisms respond to changes in their environment by activating complex signaling cascades. The "hypoxia-signaling cascade" is activated in response to low oxygen availability and this activation is central to maintaining oxygen homeostasis and hence to survival. By regulating the transcriptional complex hypoxia-inducible factor, hypoxia is associated with several physiopathological processes. Several strategies, based on the targeting of the hypoxia-signaling cascade, have been developed to treat these pathologies. Our review summarize different aspects of the hypoxic pathway.