This Article  • Full text  • PDF  • Reply to article  • Send to a friend  • Save in My Folder  • Save to citation manager  • Permissions  Citing Articles  • Citation map  • Citing articles on HighWire  • Citing articles on Web of Science (16)  • Contact me when this article is cited  Related Content  • Similar articles in this journal  Topic Collections  • Pathology of Head & Neck  • Genetics  • Genetic Counseling/ Testing/ Therapy  • Alert me on articles by topic  Social Bookmarking   What's this?

Jeong-Su Woo, MD; Ji Yong Jeong, MD; You Jin Hwang, PhD; Sung Won Chae, MD; Soon Jae Hwang, MD; Heung-Man Lee, MD, PhD

Arch Otolaryngol Head Neck Surg. 2003;129:211-214.

Background  Salivary secretions play a critical role in maintaining oral health via innate host defense mechanisms and secretion of secretory IgA. One of the antimicrobial peptides, LL-37, is the only cathelicidin protein that has yet been identified in humans. Cathelicidins are a family of peptides thought to provide an innate defensive barrier against a variety of potential microbial pathogens.

Objectives  To examine the expression of cathelicidin in human salivary glands and to investigate up-regulation of cathelicidin in inflammatory conditions.

Design  Reverse transcriptase–polymerase chain reaction and immunohistochemical staining were performed on 20 salivary gland tissues, 10 from normal salivary glands and 10 from glands with chronic sialadenitis.

Results  Cathelicidin messenger RNA transcripts were detected in the tissues from the normal salivary glands and the glands with chronic sialadenitis. The level of cathelicidin messenger RNA in glands with chronic sialadenitis was significantly increased compared with that in normal salivary glands. Cathelicidin protein was expressed in the glandular epithelium of the normal salivary glands and the glands with chronic sialadenitis.

Conclusion  The results indicate that cathelicidin might play an important role in innate host defense of human salivary glands.

From the Department of Otorhinolaryngology–Head and Neck Surgery, Communication Disorder Institute of Medical Research Center, Korea University College of Medicine, Seoul (Drs Woo, Jeong, Chae, Soon Jae Hwang, and Lee), and Department of Molecular Biology, Gil Medical Center, Gachon Medical School, Inchon City, Korea (Dr You Jin Hwang).

CiteULike    Connotea    Del.icio.us    Digg    Reddit    Technorati    Twitter     What's this?

THIS ARTICLE HAS BEEN CITED BY OTHER ARTICLES

Host Defense Peptides in the Oral Cavity and the Lung: Similarities and Differences
Diamond et al.
JDR 2008;87:915-927.
ABSTRACT | FULL TEXT  

Expression and Secretion of Cathelicidin LL-37 in Human Epithelial Cells after Infection by Mycobacterium bovis Bacillus Calmette-Guerin
Mendez-Samperio et al.
CVI 2008;15:1450-1455.
ABSTRACT | FULL TEXT  

Salivary LL-37 Secretion in Individuals with Down Syndrome is Normal
Bachrach et al.
JDR 2006;85:933-936.
ABSTRACT | FULL TEXT  

Actinobacillus actinomycetemcomitans Outer Membrane Protein 100 Triggers Innate Immunity and Production of {beta}-Defensin and the 18-Kilodalton Cationic Antimicrobial Protein through the Fibronectin-Integrin Pathway in Human Gingival Epithelial Cells
Ouhara et al.
Infect. Immun. 2006;74:5211-5220.
ABSTRACT | FULL TEXT  

Modulation by LL-37 of the Responses of Salivary Glands to Purinergic Agonists
Pochet et al.
Mol. Pharmacol. 2006;69:2037-2046.
ABSTRACT | FULL TEXT  

Salivary Antimicrobial Peptide Expression and Dental Caries Experience in Children
Tao et al.
Antimicrob. Agents Chemother. 2005;49:3883-3888.
ABSTRACT | FULL TEXT  

Immunomodulatory Activities of Small Host Defense Peptides
Bowdish et al.
Antimicrob. Agents Chemother. 2005;49:1727-1732.
ABSTRACT | FULL TEXT