Four-and-a-Half LIM Domain Proteins Inhibit Transactivation by Hypoxia-inducible Factor 1

Hypoxia-inducible factor 1 (HIF-1) is a transcription factor that promotes angiogenesis, metabolic reprogramming, and other critical aspects of cancer biology. The four-and-a-half LIM domain (FHL) proteins are a family of LIM domain-only proteins implicated in transcriptional regulation and suppression of tumor growth. Here we describe functional interactions between the FHL proteins and HIF-1. FHL1-3 inhibit HIF-1 transcriptional activity and HIF-1 alpha transactivation domain function by oxygen-independent mechanisms. FHL2 directly interacts with HIF-1 alpha to repress transcriptional activity. FHL1 binds to the p300/CBP co-activators and disrupts binding with HIF-1 alpha. FHL3 does not bind to HIF-1 alpha or p300, indicating that it regulates transactivation by a novel molecular mechanism. Expression of the FHL proteins increased upon HIF-1 alpha induction, suggesting the existence of a feedback loop. These results identify FHL proteins as negative regulators of HIF-1 activity, which may provide a mechanism by which they suppress tumor growth.