therapeutic target

EMBO Reports

Review19 September 2018free access Protein palmitoylation and cancer Pin-Joe Ko Department of Biology, Stanford University, Stanford, CA, USA Search for more papers by this author Scott J Dixon Corresponding Author [email protected] orcid.org/0000-0001-6230-8199 Department of Biology, Stanford University, Stanford, CA, USA Search for more papers by this author Pin-Joe Ko Department of Biology, Stanford University, Stanford, CA, USA Search for more papers by this author Scott J Dixon Corresponding Author [email protected] orcid.org/0000-0001-6230-8199 Department of Biology, Stanford University, Stanford, CA, USA Search for more papers by this author Author Information Pin-Joe Ko1 and Scott J Dixon *,1 1Department of Biology, Stanford University, Stanford, CA, USA *Corresponding author. Tel: +1 650 725 1798; E-mail: [email protected] EMBO Rep (2018)19:e46666https://doi.org/10.15252/embr.201846666 See the Glossary for abbreviations used in this article. PDFDownload PDF of article text and main figures. ToolsAdd to favoritesDownload CitationsTrack CitationsPermissions ShareFacebookTwitterLinked InMendeleyWechatReddit Figures & Info Abstract Protein S-palmitoylation is a reversible post-translational modification that alters the localization, stability, and function of hundreds of proteins in the cell. S-palmitoylation is essential for the function of both oncogenes (e.g., NRAS and EGFR) and tumor suppressors (e.g., SCRIB, melanocortin 1 receptor). In mammalian cells, the thioesterification of palmitate to internal cysteine residues is catalyzed by 23 Asp-His-His-Cys (DHHC)-family palmitoyl S-acyltransferases while the removal of palmitate is catalyzed by serine hydrolases, including acyl-protein thioesterases (APTs). These enzymes modulate the function of important oncogenes and tumor suppressors and often display altered expression patterns in cancer. Targeting S-palmitoylation or the enzymes responsible for palmitoylation dynamics may therefore represent a candidate therapeutic strategy for certain cancers. Glossar...