Hareesh Ragav
Pronouns: He, Him, His
Research Mentor(s): Isabelle Lombaert, Principal Investigator
Research Mentor School/College/Department: Biological and Material Sciences, School of Dentistry
Presentation Date: Thursday, April 22, 2021
Session: Session 5 (3pm-3:50pm)
Breakout Room: Room 7
Presenter: 4
Abstract
Roughly 600,000+ cases of head and neck cancer are diagnosed annually with the majority of these patients being treated with therapeutic irradiation (IR). Unfortunately, IR often causes irreversible salivary gland (SG) damage, hyposalivation, and permanent xerostomia (dry mouth syndrome). A lack of saliva negatively impacts the oral cavity by increasing tooth decay and infections, as well as impairing swallowing, speech, and sense of taste. To address the underlying mechanisms causing SG dysfunction, and to ultimately bring new therapies to treat this condition to the clinic, preclinical test models are needed. Unlike small rodents, minipigs serve as an ideal model as they are more closely related to humans based on the anatomy and location of the SGs in the head and neck area. Most pig models focus solely on the parotid gland and do not include the SMG. As both glands can be affected by radiation and may require repair, we applied two different radiation doses and evaluated the submandibular glands (SMGs) for morphological damage using immunohistochemistry and immunofluorescence staining. Our overall goals are to determine which radiation dose most closely mimics the damage observed in human studies and to establish a preclinical minipig model for xerostomia that affects the SMG.
Authors: Hareesh Ragav, Christina Jones, Isabelle Lombaert
Research Method: Library/Archival/Internet Research
