Pan‐Cancer Multi‐Omics Analysis Reveals the Potential of
ZDHHC16
in Tumor Progression and Immune Regulation
Haolong Zhang, Sen Wu, Yufei Ma, Yufei Yang, Yixin Zhang, Xue Hai Liu, Haoling Zhang, Zheng Zhang ABSTRACT
S‐palmitoylation is a crucial post‐translational modification that regulates diverse cellular processes, particularly signalling pathways. The ZDHHC family of enzymes catalyzes this modification, however, the role of ZDHHC16 in cancer warrants in‐depth investigation. This study presents a comprehensive pan‐cancer analysis of ZDHHC16, examining its expression patterns, clinical relevance, associations with immune responses, genomic characteristics, and potential as a therapeutic target. We further analysed single‐cell and spatial transcriptomic data to identify specific cell populations associated with ZDHHC16 dysregulation. Our findings reveal that ZDHHC16 dysregulation is tissue‐specific and promotes tumor progression and modulates immune responses, highlighting its potential as a therapeutic target in several cancers, including ACC and BRCA. In ACC and BRCA, high ZDHHC16 expression correlates with shorter overall survival ( p < 0.001) and regulates PD‐L1 expression.