Figure 6. REST is a master regulator of gene repression in hypoxia and regulates different transcriptional networks depending on oxygen availability.

Our analysis showed that REST repressed 20% of the hypoxia-repressed genes, and only 0.7% of all genes repressed in normoxia. Furthermore there is only a limited overlap between the 2 transcriptional networks (5 genes), and most of the genes repressed by REST in normoxia are still repressed by REST under hypoxia. Thus, rather than a shift on the transcriptional repertoire of REST target genes from normoxia to hypoxia, we show that there is a recruitment to new target genes in hypoxia.