“…Only AKR1B1 expression has a significant association with clinical outcome, being associated with reduced survival in acute myeloid leukemias and multiple myeloma (Figure 3). Recent reports have implicated AKRs in cellular responses to various stresses, including promotion of hypoxia-driven HIF1a signaling, inflammation, and resistance to chemotherapeutics (Dan et al, 2003; Plebuch et al, 2007; Yadav et al, 2007, 2009, 2011; Matsunaga et al, 2011; Zhong et al, 2011). AKR1B1 over-expression has also been associated with an EMT-like phenotype, is implicated in colon carcinogenesis, and notably, increased AKR1B1 protein expression and enzymatic activity has been reported in several cancer types (Saraswat et al, 2006; Tammali et al, 2009, 2011a,b; Ramana et al, 2010; Zablocki et al, 2011), further suggesting that AKRs play a functional role in tumor growth.…”