In colorectal cancer (CRC) and ulcerative colitis (UC), the afa-1 operon in E. coli has been demonstrated to induce the overexpression of HIF-1α and upregulate the expression of IL-8, VEGF, and Twist1 genes, while simultaneously downregulating the expression of E-cadherin (Fig. 2). Here, HIF1A is linked to colorectal cancer.