Van Zwieten et al. (2019) demonstrated that the upregulation of HIF-1α can enhance the expression of vascular endothelial growth factor (VEGF) and erythropoietin (EPO), which subsequently leads to increased local cerebral blood flow and a reduction in the extent of cerebral infarction following ischemic stroke in animal models. The gene discussed is EPO; the disease is cerebral infarction.