Salivary flow and constituents

Question 1

What are the 3 major pairs of salivary glands?

Answer 1

Parotid
submandibular
sublingual

Question 2

What cells make up the parotid gland?

Answer 2

99% serous cells

Question 3

What cells make up the submandibular gland?

Answer 3

mixed: 80% serous cells and 20% mucous cells
serous demilunes

Question 4

what type of salivary secretion is the sublingual gland?

Answer 4

largely mucous secretions

Question 5

What minor salivary gland secretes serous saliva?

Answer 5

serous gland of von ebner

Question 6

What type of saliva does the majority of minor salivary glands secrete?

Answer 6

Mucous secretions

Question 7

What is the stimulated saliva flow rate

Answer 7

2-4 ml/min

Question 8

what is the unstimulated salivary flow

Answer 8

0.2-0.5ml/min

Question 9

At rest, majority of saliva is secreted by what gland? 70%

Answer 9

70% from submandibular gland

Question 10

When stimulated, majority of the saliva is secreted by what gland? 60%

Answer 10

60% from the parotid gland

Question 11

What saliva gland did studies find there what a unilateral olfcatory salivary reflex ?

Answer 11

olfactory-submandibular reflex

Question 12

Serous saliva is mainly secreted from what salivary glands?

Answer 12

Mainly from parotid and submandibular glands

Question 13

Mucous saliva is mainly secreted by what salivary glands?

Answer 13

sublingual and minor glands

Question 14

Does saliva flow increase or decrease at night?

Answer 14

decrease

Question 15

What is the scientific name for a dry mouth/lack of saliva?

Answer 15

xerostomia

Question 16

What can be the problems associated with xerostomia?

Answer 16

• increased caries
• mucosal infections (esp. fungal)
• pain from oral mucosa
• difficulty chewing, swallowing, speaking
• impaired taste

Question 17

What % of saliva is H20?

Answer 17

99%

Question 18

Is saliva hypotonic or isotonic?

Answer 18

hypotonic

Question 19

What is a cation?

Answer 19

a positively charged ion

Question 20

what is an anion?

Answer 20

a negatively charged ion

Question 21

what cation electrolytes are in saliva?

Answer 21

sodium (Na+)
Potassium (K+)
Calcium (Ca2+)
Magnesium (Mg2+)

Question 22

What anion electrolytes are in saliva?

Answer 22

Chloride (Cl-)
Bicarbonate (HCO3-)
Phosphate (PO4)3-
Thiocyanate (SCN-)
Sulphate (SO2)4-
Fluoride (F-)
Iodide (I-)
Hydroxyl (OH-)

Question 23

What is the benefit of HCO3- (bicarbonate)

Answer 23

Acts as a buffer
minimises drop in pH around teeth after consumption of sugar/acids
minimises demineralisation of teeth

Question 24

What is the advantage and disadvantage of supersaturated Ca2+ and PO43-

Answer 24

adv - promotes remineralisation
disadv - mineralisation of plaque = calculus

Question 25

What salivary constituent may be important in breaking down polysaccharides/starches in plaque/around teeth?

Answer 25

salivary amylase

Question 26

What salivary constituent breaks down fat?

Answer 26

salivary lipase

Question 27

What salivary gland produces salivary lipase?

Answer 27

lingual minor glands - serous glands of von ebner

Question 28

What salivary constituent coats all oral soft tissues, to lubricate them, provide a barrier and prevent them from drying?

Answer 28

mucous glycoproteins - mucins