Neural Mechanisms of Salivary Gland Secretion /Glandular Mechanisms of Salivary Gland Secretion

Saliva is essential for oral health and influences all events in the mouth. In 1850 Ludwig discovered that autonomic nerve impulses evoke salivary secretion and all work since has shown that the nerves normally control the flow and protein output of saliva. This first part of this publication is devoted to the neuroglandular mechanisms of this control. The chapters contained deal with: the intimate details of the nerves and their different transmitters in the glands; central connections of the glandular nerves; receptors in the glands; nerve-induced glandular secretion of proteins; autonomic transmitters on salivary cells; the roles of non-conventional transmitters in the glands; the effects of denervations on the glands, on their capacity to synthesize and secrete proteins, and the development of supersensitivities to transmitter substances. Further chapters prescribe the inter-relationship between taste and saliva formation, and the reflexes involved in salivary secretion.
The second section of this work covers the basis of saliva secretion, examining the histological basis for secretion, electrophysiological events, electrolyte and water secretion, protein synthesis and secretion, bloodflow, capillary dynamics, myoepithelial activity, glandular permeability, hormonal influences, including the effects of diabetes, and the synthesis and secretion of IgA in man. The secretory mechanisms described have a far-reaching impact beyond the salivary field and have applicability to all forms of exocrine secretion. Salivary glands offer many advantages for experimental study of these phenomena since they can be tested more precisely than most other glands, having ducts that can readily be cannulated for assessing the secretion.