HIF-1α is stabilized in macrophages and smooth muscle cells near the necrotic core of atherosclerotic vascular lesions in humans and in animal models (Sluimer et al., 2008; Lim et al., 2013; Ferns and Heikal, 2017), and HIF-1 has been implicated in atherosclerosis progression (Kasivisvanathan et al., 2011). This evidence concerns the gene HIF1A and atherosclerosis.