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Article
Development and Growth of Human Salivary Stones by Neutrophil Extracellular Traps
Martin Herrmann
Friedrich-Alexander Universität (FAU) Erlangen-Nürnberg
Corresponding Author
ORCiD: https://orcid.org/0000-0002-0258-2484
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This work is licensed under a CC BY 4.0 License. Read Full License
Salivary gland stones, or sialoliths, are the most common cause of the obstruction of salivary glands. Symptomatic sialolithiasis has a prevalence of 0.45% in the general population, is characterized by recurrent painful periprandial swelling of the affected gland and often results in sialadenitis with the need for surgical intervention. The mechanism behind the formation of sialoliths has been elusive. Here we show that neutrophil extracellular traps (NETs) initiate the formation and growth of sialoliths. The deposition of neutrophil granulocyte extracellular DNA around small crystals results in their dense aggregation, and the subsequent mineralization creates alternating layers of dense mineral, predominantly calcium salt deposits and DNA. Further agglomeration and appositional growth of these structures promotes the development of macroscopic sialoliths that finally occlude the efferent ducts of the salivary glands, causing clinical symptoms and salivary gland dysfunction. These findings provide an entirely novel insight into the mechanism of sialolithogenesis in which an immune system mediated response essentially participates in the physico-chemical process of concrement formation and growth.
Keywords
Salivary stones, Sialolithiasis, Sialadenitis, Salivary glands, Neutrophil extracellular traps, NETs
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The center of the sialolith showed a strong autofluorescence, discriminating the core from the outer layers. LSFM (Light sheet fluorescence microscopy) of a submandibular sialolith. After decalcification, the strong central autofluorescence separated the core from the outer layers. Size bar: 10 mm.
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This is a preprint. It has not completed peer review.
Article
Development and Growth of Human Salivary Stones by Neutrophil Extracellular Traps
Martin Herrmann
Friedrich-Alexander Universität (FAU) Erlangen-Nürnberg
Corresponding Author
ORCiD: https://orcid.org/0000-0002-0258-2484
Badges
Prescreen
This manuscript passed our Prescreen assessment
Complete author information
Appropriate declaration statements
Potential risks to human health
Prescreen
History
CURRENT STATUS: Posted
Version 1
Posted 14 Aug, 2020
No community comments so far
Metrics
Comments: 0
PDF Downloads: ...
HTML Views: ...
Subject Areas
Internal Medicine
License:
This work is licensed under a CC BY 4.0 License. Read Full License
Salivary gland stones, or sialoliths, are the most common cause of the obstruction of salivary glands. Symptomatic sialolithiasis has a prevalence of 0.45% in the general population, is characterized by recurrent painful periprandial swelling of the affected gland and often results in sialadenitis with the need for surgical intervention. The mechanism behind the formation of sialoliths has been elusive. Here we show that neutrophil extracellular traps (NETs) initiate the formation and growth of sialoliths. The deposition of neutrophil granulocyte extracellular DNA around small crystals results in their dense aggregation, and the subsequent mineralization creates alternating layers of dense mineral, predominantly calcium salt deposits and DNA. Further agglomeration and appositional growth of these structures promotes the development of macroscopic sialoliths that finally occlude the efferent ducts of the salivary glands, causing clinical symptoms and salivary gland dysfunction. These findings provide an entirely novel insight into the mechanism of sialolithogenesis in which an immune system mediated response essentially participates in the physico-chemical process of concrement formation and growth.
Figure 1
Figure 2
Figure 3
Figure 4