title: Quality of salivary tears following autologous submandibular gland transplantation for severe dry eye.
abstract: BACKGROUND
  This study aimed to characterise the composition of the pre-ocular fluid after transplantation of the autologous submandibular gland (SMG) for patients with severe dry eye.
  
  
  METHODS
  Stimulated and unstimulated pre-ocular fluid from 15 patients (17 eyes) with a viable SMG graft ("SMG-salivary tears"), as well as normal tears and SMG saliva (20 normal subjects/ 20 eyes), was sampled. As global tear parameters, fern pattern analysis and SDS gel electrophoresis were performed. As specific quality parameters, total protein content, secretory immunoglobulin A (SIgA), lysozyme, amylase, sodium, potassium and osmolality were measured using routine laboratory methods. The flow rate of SMG-salivary tears was determined in 5 patients by means of sequential scintillography.
  
  
  RESULTS
  The fern pattern of SMG-salivary tears was coarse and thus more similar to normal SMG saliva than tears. SDS gel electrophoresis of the SMG-salivary tears showed albumin and two unidentified proteins in addition to the normal tear pattern. Osmolality and total protein content of SMG-salivary tears were higher than in normal SMG saliva, but still lower than in normal tears. High activities of normal tear antibacterial proteins (SIgA, lysozyme and amylase) were detected in the salivary tears. Stimulation of the secretion did not alter the composition of SMG-salivary tears. The flow rate of SMG-salivary tears was closer to that of normal tears than normal SMG saliva.
  
  
  CONCLUSIONS
  Salivary tears resulting from SMG-transplantation represent condensed SMG saliva. Thus their quality is intermediate between normal tears and normal SMG saliva. High levels of secretory proteins demonstrate that the gland maintains an active function. Surgical denervation and residual tear components from the ocular surface are the most likely factors to cause the complex differences between normal SMG saliva and SMG-salivary tears. The effects of this secretion on the ocular surface are currently being evaluated in a clinical and laboratory study.
authors.affiliation: Department of Ophthalmology, Medical University of Lübeck, Germany.
authors.forename: G
authors.initials: G
authors.lastname: Geerling
authors.forename: K
authors.initials: K
authors.lastname: Honnicke
authors.forename: C
authors.initials: C
authors.lastname: Schröder
authors.forename: C
authors.initials: C
authors.lastname: Framme
authors.forename: P
authors.initials: P
authors.lastname: Sieg
authors.forename: I
authors.initials: I
authors.lastname: Lauer
authors.forename: H
authors.initials: H
authors.lastname: Pagel
authors.forename: M
authors.initials: M
authors.lastname: Kirschstein
authors.forename: M
authors.initials: M
authors.lastname: Seyfarth
authors.forename: A M
authors.initials: AM
authors.lastname: Marx
authors.forename: H
authors.initials: H
authors.lastname: Laqua
mesh_terms: D000293:Adolescent; D000328:Adult; D000368:Aged; D000681:Amylases / Q000032:analysis; D015352:Dry Eye Syndromes / Q000378:metabolism / Q000601:surgery*; D005260:Female; D006801:Humans; D007071:Immunoglobulin A, Secretory / Q000032:analysis; D008297:Male; D008875:Middle Aged; D009113:Muramidase / Q000032:analysis; D009994:Osmolar Concentration; D011188:Potassium / Q000032:analysis; D011506:Proteins / Q000032:analysis; D011877:Radionuclide Imaging; D012964:Sodium / Q000032:analysis; D013363:Submandibular Gland / Q000000981:diagnostic imaging / Q000378:metabolism / Q000637:transplantation*; D013666:Tears / Q000737:chemistry* / Q000378:metabolism; D014182:Transplantation, Autologous; D016896:Treatment Outcome
chemical_list: D007071:Immunoglobulin A, Secretory; D011506:Proteins; D012964:Sodium; D000681:Amylases; D009113:Muramidase; D011188:Potassium