The migration of vascular smooth muscle cells from the media to intima and their subsequent proliferation are critical causes of arterial wall thickening. In atherosclerotic lesions increases in the thickness of the vascular wall and the impairment of oxygen diffusion capacity result in the development of hypoxic lesions. We investigated the effect of hypoxia on the migration of human coronary artery smooth muscle cells (CASMCs) via HIF‐1α‐dependent expression of thrombospondin‐1 (TSP‐1). When the cells were cultured under hypoxic conditions, mRNA and protein levels of TSP‐1, and mRNA levels of integrin β₃ were increased with the increase in HIF‐1α protein. DNA synthesis and migration of the cells were stimulated under the conditions, and a neutralizing anti‐TSP‐1 antibody apparently suppressed the migration, but not DNA synthesis. The migration was also inhibited by RGD peptide that binds to integrin β₃. Furthermore, the migration was completely suppressed in HIF‐1α‐knockdown cells exposed to hypoxia, while it was significantly enhanced in HIF‐1α‐overexpressing cells. These results suggest that the hypoxia induces the migration of CASMCs, and that the migration is elicited by TSP‐1 of which induction is fully dependent on the stabilization of HIF‐1α, in autocrine regulation. Thus we suggest that HIF‐1α plays an important role in the pathogenesis of atherosclerosis. J. Cell. Biochem. 104: 1918–1926, 2008. © 2008 Wiley‐Liss, Inc.