Genetic basis of oxygen sensing in the carotid body: HIF2α and an isoform switch in cytochrome c oxidase subunit 4
Bishop T., Ratcliffe PJ.
<jats:p>The mechanistic basis of the marked oxygen sensitivity of glomus cells in the carotid body has long puzzled physiologists. In this issue of <jats:italic>Science Signaling</jats:italic>, Moreno-Domínguez <jats:italic>et al.</jats:italic> show the critical importance of high levels of hypoxia-inducible factor, HIF2α/EPAS1, and the nuclear-encoded mitochondrial cytochrome c oxidase subunit, COX4I2, in glomus cell sensitivity to hypoxia.</jats:p>