This Article Full Text (PDF) References Alert me when this article is cited Alert me if a correction is posted Citation Map Services Email this article to a friend Similar articles in this journal Similar articles in PubMed Alert me to new issues of the journal Add to Saved Citations Download to citation manager Request Permissions Request Reprints Add to My Marked Citations Citing Articles Citing Articles via HighWire Citing Articles via Google Scholar Citing Articles via Scopus Google Scholar Articles by O'Connell, A.C. Articles by Bowen, W.H. Search for Related Content PubMed PubMed Citation Articles by O'Connell, A.C. Articles by Bowen, W.H. Social Bookmarking                         What's this?

Pilocarpine Alters Caries Development in Partially-desalivated Rats

Department of Dental Research, Rochester Caries Research Center, University of Rochester, 601 Elmwood Ave., Rochester, New York 14642

S.K. Pearson

Department of Dental Research, Rochester Caries Research Center, University of Rochester, 601 Elmwood Ave., Rochester, New York 14642

W.H. Bowen

Department of Dental Research, Rochester Caries Research Center, University of Rochester, 601 Elmwood Ave., Rochester, New York 14642

This study examined the effect of pilocarpine on caries and saliva composition in rats with compromised salivary gland function. Eight litters of specific-pathogen-free female Sprague-Dawley rats were divided into five groups for surgery. Partial desalivation was performed in either of three ways: (1) Both parotid ducts were ligated; (2) both submandibular/sublingual (SM/SL) glands were excised; or (3) one parotid duct was ligated, and submandibular/ sublingual glands were removed unilaterally. Completely desalivated animals and unoperated animals served as positive and negative controls, respectively. One week following surgery, groups were subdivided so that half of each group had osmotic pumps implanted which delivered pilocarpine HCl (24 mg/kg/day). All animals were infected with Streptococcus sobrinus 6715 and fed cariogenic diet ad libitum for 28 days. Caries scores, microbiological data, and saliva flow rate and composition were determined for all animals. Animals which had both SM/SL glands removed and received pilocarpine developed significantly lower sulcal caries (p 0.05) compared with the animals that had both SM/SL removed but did not receive pilocarpine. The concentration of protein in parotid saliva in these pilocarpine-treated animals was unaffected, and nodif f erences were observed in the electrophoretic profiles on SDS-PAGE. Pilocarpine appears to exert its greatest caries-protective effect when the parotid glands remain intact.

Key Words: Dental Caries • Pilocarpine • Rats • Salivary Glands

Journal of Dental Research, Vol. 73, No. 3, 637-643 (1994)
DOI: 10.1177/00220345940730030901


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

This article has been cited by other articles:

				F. B. Vivino, I. Al-Hashimi, Z. Khan, F. G. LeVeque, P. L. Salisbury III, T. K. Tran-Johnson, C. C. Muscoplat, M. Trivedi, B. Goldlust, S. C. Gallagher, et al. Pilocarpine Tablets for the Treatment of Dry Mouth and Dry Eye Symptoms in Patients With Sjogren Syndrome: A Randomized, Placebo-Controlled, Fixed-Dose, Multicenter Trial Arch Intern Med, January 25, 1999; 159(2): 174 - 181. [Abstract] [Full Text] [PDF]