Parotid Gland Cells Cultured In Vitro Model And Cell Extracellular Ca (2 +) Cells

The major salivary glands are complex exocrine glands secreting saliva, which functions as digesting carbohydrates, protecting epithelium of oral cavity, preventing teeth from caries and direct antibacterial activity. Now studies on the structure, proliferation, differentiation, physiological secretion and regulation of salivary glands cells have become an important way to discuss salivary glands diseases. Previously, because it was hard to get the long- term cultured salivary glands cells, most of the studies of salivary glands cells were based on animal experiments and dispersed salivary glands cells, which also have yield useful information. However, functionally active cells were in a complicated environment in vivo and had been difficult to maintain in vitro. So, many biological characteristics of salivary glands cells were still obscure.It has been reported that calcium plays an critical role in cell structure and function. Tn addition to cytosolic Ca2+ being involved in the regulation of a number of important functions in the epithelial as a second messenger in the signal transduction pathway, the extracellular Ca2+ affects the proliferation and differentiation of cells including fibroblasts, keratinocytes and gland cells. However, almost all the studies of extracellular Ca2+ were on Ca2+ concentration below the physiological concentration. No report was about the effect of much higher extracellular Ca2+ concentration on epithelial cells. In this report, a serial studies about the relationship of Ca2+ with parotid gland cells structure, proliferation, differentiation and secretion regulation were carried out.This research includes three parts. Firstly, a model of culturing Hamster parotid gland cells was established which mimiced the characteristics in vivo structurally, proliferously, differentially and functionally. Secondly, advanced stereological methods were used to quantify the structure changes of the cultured cells undertreatment of higher extracellular Ca2+ Immunohistochemical staining method was also used to...