MCRS1 is associated with immunosuppressive microenvironments in pan-cancer and promotes hepatocellular carcinoma malignant phenotypes

Abstract Background: Pan-cancer analyses focused on the immunological significance and therapeutic potential of microspherule protein 1 (MCRS1) remain unreported. This study aims to define the pan-cancer immunological significance and therapeutic potential of MCRS1, with focused mechanistic dissection of its epigenetic-driven roles in hepatocellular carcinoma (HCC) progression. Methods: An integrated multi-omics approach was employed, encompassing bulk transcriptomics, single-cell RNA-sequencing (scRNA-seq), and functional validation. Data from public repositories including The Cancer Genome Atlas (TCGA), Genotype-Tissue Expression (GTEx), and the Human Protein Atlas