Scientists have identified a crucial "on switch" in the immune system that helps to boost the body's defences against infections.
Researchers at the universities of Aberdeen and Dundee hope the discovery could lead to the development of new drugs to benefit people suffering from cancer and other serious illnesses.
Dr Cristina Martin-Granados, formerly of the University of Aberdeen but now based at the University of Cambridge, said: "We have shown that the cells which turn on our immune responses to defend against infectious diseases, for example, require a particular protein to activate them in order to function properly.
"This protein, or enzyme, (PTP1B) effectively acts as a kind of 'on switch' and if it is missing or dysfunctional in our body, we cannot mount effective immune responses to tumours or infections.
"The work shows that this important protein in our cells is a potential target for new therapies to regulate the immune system when it needs a boost, as in severe infections, or when it goes wrong, as in cancer."
Dr Alan Prescott, from the University of Dundee, said: "The key switch molecule PTP1B allows the uninterrupted production of something called podosomes, which behave like feet for the cell.
"The cells that turn on our immune systems (dendritic cells) use these 'mini-feet' to move though tissue and 'home in' on a type of white blood cell called a T cell, which are essential for clearing viruses from our system.
"These are located at the 'glands', such as those in our neck, which become enlarged when patients get throat infections, for example."
The findings have been published in the Journal of Molecular and Cell Biology.
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