**5. Conclusion**

Digestion: water and mucin content of saliva aids in bolus formation during the process of mastication. Saliva contains salivary amylase (ptyalin) which helps in digestion of starch and

Antimicrobial activity: mucins aid in providing a physical barrier to infections by preventing attachment of microorganisms to tooth and tissue surface. Presence of secretory immunoglobulin A provides immune defense. Peroxidase, lysozyme, lactoferrin, histatin, mucins,

Buffering: bicarbonate, phosphate, basic proteins, urea and ammonia help maintain the pH

Tissue repair: salivary glands release growth factors, trefoil proteins into saliva which aid is

Taste: saliva acts as a solvent in which molecules from food items can dissolve and reach the taste buds, epidermal growth factor and carbonic anhydrase VI maintains taste buds. Role of saliva in periodontal pathology: saliva exerts a major influence on plaque initiation, maturation and metabolism. The first step in plaque formation is formation of pellicle fol-

Salivary proteins may play a role in plaque mineralization. It is indicated that esterase, pyrophosphatase, acid phosphatase and lysozyme may be involved. Persons with heavy calculus,

Polymorphonuclear neutrophils (PMNs) reach the oral cavity by migrating through the lining of gingival sulcus. Skougaard and Bay, 1994 believe that orogranulocytic migratory rate correlates with severity of gingival inflammation and is therefore reliable index for assessing

The saliva acts as an important diagnostic oral fluid owing to its ease and non-invasive mode of collection. A number of components secreted in saliva can be assessed and used to assess

A few of the components used as specific biomarkers for detection of periodontal disease include immunoglobulins (Ig) such as IgA, IgM, IgG which interfere in adherence and bacterial metabolism and are present in increased concentration in saliva of chronic and aggressive periodontal patients. Nonspecific markers for aggressive periodontitis include mucins which interfere with the colonization of Aggregatibacter actinomycetemcomitans (A. a), lactoferrin which inhibits microbial growth/increased correlation with A. a. Markers for chronic periodontitis include lysozyme which regulates biofilm accumulation and peroxidase which interferes with biofilm accumulation. Nonspecific markers for both chronic and aggressive periodontitis include histatin which neutralizes lipopolysaccharide and enzymes known to affect periodontium and C-reactive proteins which are present in increased concentrations in

Other areas where saliva can be used for diagnosis of diseases and conditions include cystic fibrosis, which is a genetically transmitted disease of children and young adults characterized

have higher levels of salivary glycoproteins than non-calculus formers [1–6, 8, 9].

agglutinin, defensins and cathelicidin also help in providing antimicrobial activity.

lingual lipase secreted by von Ebner's gland breaks down triglycerides.

10 Salivary Glands - New Approaches in Diagnostics and Treatment

and neutralization of acids.

gingivitis [8–11].

diseased states.

tissue repair and regeneration.

lowed by plaque formation and maturation [1–6, 8, 9].

saliva and serum of patients with periodontitis [8].

The secretions of salivary gland form an integral part of maintaining the physiology of the oral cavity. Saliva is the most important and essential secretion of the salivary glands. Saliva itself has varied functions in the oral cavity and provides additional insight and details of the systemic status of the individual as well. With the advancement in the field of proteomics, transcriptomics and genomics, better and easier methods of detecting diseases by analyzing saliva are being discovered. For this reason the study of salivary glands and its secretion becomes needful.

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Secretions of Human Salivary Gland http://dx.doi.org/10.5772/intechopen.75538 13

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