Comparación de la concentración total de proteínas salivales de adultos y adultos mayores

objective: a high number of proteins has been described in saliva. scarce evidence allows to speculate about the variations on protein content associated with aging. the aim was to determine if there is a difference in total protein concentration between adults and older adults. methods: samples were collected from unstimulated and stimulated saliva of individuals from two age groups, adults (a) (n=30) (mean age 25 years) and older adults (oa) (n=30)(mean age: 68 years). subjects with oral/systemic diseases or consuming medications that alter salivary flow were excluded from the study. each sample was centrifuged and 10 μl of the supernatant was added to 190 μl of bradford solution. protein concentration was obtained by spectrophotometry (595 nm) protein concentration was compared between the groups using student’s t test (p<0.05). results: total protein concentration from unstimulated saliva was higher in oa (5.5±2.6 ug/ul) than in a (3.2 ± 1.7 ug/ul) (p<0.05). total protein concentration of stimulated saliva was higher in oa (4.9±0.4 ug/ul) than in a (4.0±0.3 ug/ul) (p<0.05). conclusion: salivary protein concentration increases in older adults. further studies are suggested to characterize these changes.