SLC39A9 is a zinc transporter protein that functions as both a conventional zinc importer and a membrane androgen receptor. As a zinc transporter, SLC39A9 facilitates zinc ion transport across cellular and organellar membranes, regulating intracellular zinc homeostasis and participating in zinc efflux from secretory compartments 1. The protein plays a critical role in cellular processes by modulating zinc availability in the tumor microenvironment, where cancer cells upregulate SLC39A9 to accumulate intracellular zinc while depleting environmental zinc, affecting tumor-associated macrophage function 1. SLC39A9 also serves as a non-classical membrane androgen receptor, mediating androgen signaling through G protein-coupled pathways that activate MAPK and other downstream effectors 23. This dual functionality enables SLC39A9 to promote cancer cell migration and invasion in androgen receptor-negative bladder cancer cells via DHT/mAR-SLC39A9/Gαi/MAPK/MMP9 signaling 2. Additionally, SLC39A9 functions as an entry factor for viral infections, directly binding viral proteins to facilitate cellular entry 4. The protein's expression is altered in brain tissue with aging and obesity, and increased expression correlates with enhanced glioblastoma cell migration 56.