Intervertebral disc degeneration (IVDD) demonstrates a gradually increased incidence and has developed into a major health problem worldwide. Nucleus pulposus is characterized by the hypoxic and avascular environment, in which hypoxia inducible factor1α (HIF-1α) has an important role through its participation in extracellular matrix synthesis, energy metabolism, cellular adaptation to stresses and genesis. In this study, the effects of HIF-1α on mouse primary nucleus pulposus cells (MNPCs) exposed to TNF-α were observed and the potential mechanism was explored, and a rabbit IVDD model was established to verify the protective role of HIF-1α on IVDD. In vitro results demonstrated that HIF-1α could attenuate the inflammation, apoptosis and mitochondrial dysfunction induced by TNF-α in MNPCs, and promote cellular anabolism, and inhibit cellular catabolism. In vivo results demonstrated that after establishment of IVDD model in rabbit, disc height and IVD extracellular matrix were decreased in a time-dependent manner, and MRI analysis showed a tendency for decreased T2 values in a time-dependent manner, and supplementation of HIF-1α improved histological and imaginative IVDD while down-regulation of HIF-1α exacerbated this degeneration. In summary, HIF-1α protected against IVDD, possibly through reducing ROS production in mitochondria and consequent inhibition of inflammation, metabolism disorders and apoptosis of MNPCs, which provided a potential therapeutic instrument for treatment of IVDD diseases.