Liver Zonation in Health and Disease: Hypoxia and Hypoxia-Inducible Transcription Factors as Concert Masters

Abstract

The liver and its zonation contribute to whole body homeostasis. Acute and chronic, not always liver, diseases impair proper metabolic zonation. Various underlying pathways, such as β-catenin, hedgehog signaling, and the Hippo pathway, along with the physiologically occurring oxygen gradient, appear to be contributors. Interestingly, hypoxia and hypoxia-inducible transcription factors can orchestrate those pathways. In the current review, we connect novel findings of liver zonation in health and disease and provide a view about the dynamic interplay between these different pathways and cell-types to drive liver zonation and systemic homeostasis.