Salivary gland progenitor cell biology provides a rationale for therapeutic salivary gland regeneration.

ABSTRACT: An irreversible loss of salivary gland function often occurs in humans after removal of salivary tumors, after therapeutic radiation of head and neck tumors, as a result of Sjögren's syndrome and in genetic syndromes affecting gland development. The permanent loss of gland function impairs the oral health of these patients and broadly affects their quality of life. The regeneration of functional salivary gland tissue is thus an important therapeutic goal for the field of regenerative medicine and will likely involve stem/progenitor cell biology and/or tissue engineering approaches. Recent reports demonstrate how both innervation of the salivary gland epithelium and certain growth factors influence progenitor cell growth during mouse salivary gland development. These advances in our underst

SUBMITTER: Lombaert IM 

PROVIDER: S-EPMC3375332 | biostudies-literature | 2011 Jul

REPOSITORIES: biostudies-literature