Basic Biological Sciences Relationship between Concentration of Human Salivary Statherin and Inhibition of Calcium Phosphate Precipitation in Stimulated Human Parotid Saliva

Abstract

Human salivary secretions are supersaturated with respect to the calcium phosphate salts which form dental enamel, a property which provides important protection for the teeth. We previously proposed that statherin, a 43-residue phosphopeptide, plays a key role in this protective system by inhibiting or delaying potentially harmful precipitation of calcium phosphate salts in the salivary glands and mouth. The purpose of the present study was to determine if the concentrations of statherin in saliva, despite their wide normal range, are high enough to fulfill this function. Concentrations of statherin in stimulated human parotid saliva samples from 36 female and 32 male subjects, aged from 17 to 30 years, were determined by a single radial immunodiffusion method. Values found ranged from 3.0 to >27.3 μM, with a mean value of 12.8 (S.D. ± 5.46) μM.