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Saliva testing is a diagnostic technique that involves laboratory analysis of saliva to identify markers of endocrine, immunologic, inflammatory, infectious, and other types of conditions. Saliva is a useful biological fluid for assaying steroid hormones such as cortisol, genetic material like RNA, proteins such as enzymes and antibodies, and a variety of other substances, including natural metabolites, including saliva nitrite, a biomarker for nitric oxide status (see below for Cardiovascular Disease, Nitric Oxide: a salivary biomarker for cardio-protection). Saliva testing is used to screen for or diagnose numerous conditions and disease states, including Cushing's disease, anovulation, HIV, cancer, parasites, hypogonadism, and allergies. Salivary testing has even been used by the U.S. government to assess circadian rhythm shifts in astronauts before flight and to evaluate hormonal profiles of soldiers undergoing military survival training.〔Biol Psychiatry. 2000 May 15;47(10):891-901. Hormone profiles in humans experiencing military survival training. Morgan CA 3rd, Wang S, Mason J, Southwick SM, Fox P, Hazlett G, Charney DS, Greenfield G. National Center for PTSD, Veterans Affairs Connecticut Healthcare Systems, West Haven, Connecticut 06516, USA. PMID 10807962〕〔J Pineal Res. 1995 Apr;18(3):141-7. Melatonin and cortisol assessment of circadian shifts in astronauts before flight. Whitson PA, Putcha L, Chen YM, Baker E. Collaborators: Whitson PA, Putcha L. Medical Sciences Division, NASA/Johnson Space Center, Houston, TX 77058, USA. PMID 7562371〕 Proponents of saliva testing cite its ease of collection, safety, non-invasiveness, affordability, accuracy, and capacity to circumvent venipuncture as the primary advantages when compared to blood testing and other types of diagnostic testing. Additionally, since multiple samples can be readily obtained, saliva testing is particularly useful for performing chronobiological assessments that span hours, days, or weeks. Collecting whole saliva by passive drool has a myriad of advantages. Passive drool collection facilitates large sample size collection. Consequently, this allows the sample to be tested for more than one biomarker. It also gives the researcher the ability to freeze the left over specimen to be used at a later time. Additionally, it lessens the possibility of contamination by eliminating extra collection devices and the need to induce saliva flow.〔Granger, Douglas A., Katie T. Kivlighan, Christine Fortunato, Amanda G. Harmon, Leah C. Hibel, Eve B. Schwartz, and Guy-Lucien Whembolua. "Integration of Salivary Biomarkers into Developmental and Behaviorally-oriented Research: Problems and Solutions for Collecting Specimens." Physiology & Behavior 92.4 (2007): 583-90. Elsevier. Web.〕 The clinical use of saliva testing occurred at least as early as 1836 in patients with bronchitis. Testing the acidity of saliva occurred at least as early as 1808. The testing of salivation by the use of mercury was performed at least as early as 1685. More recent studies have focused on detection of steroid hormones and antibodies in the saliva. Recent applications emphasize the development of increasingly sophisticated techniques to detect additional proteins, genetic material, and markers of nutritional status. According to Wong, scientists are now viewing saliva as “a valuable biofluid…with the potential to extract more data than is possible currently with other diagnostic methods.”〔J Am Dent Assoc. 2006 Mar;137(3):313-21. Salivary diagnostics powered by nanotechnologies, proteomics and genomics. Wong DT. School of Dentistry, Dental Research Institute, University of California, Los Angeles 73-017 CHS, 10833 Le Conte Ave., Los Angeles, Calif 90095, USA. PMID 16570464〕 ==Technique== Most saliva testing is performed using enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay (ELISA), polymerase chain reaction (PCR), high-resolution mass spectrometry (HRMS), or any number of newer technologies such as fiber-optic-based detection. All of these methods enable detection of specific molecules like cortisol, C-reactive protein (CRP), or secretory IgA. This type of testing typically involves collection of a small amount of saliva into a sterile tube followed by processing at a remote laboratory. Some methods of testing involve collecting saliva using an absorbent pad, applying a chemical solution, and monitoring for color change to indicate a positive or negative result. This method is commonly used as a point-of-care (POC) technique to screen for HIV. However, using absorbent pads and chemical solutions could very easily skew the results of immunoassays. Research by Dr. Douglas A. Granger and colleagues shows that outcomes for testosterone, DHEA, progesterone, and estradiol biomarkers are elevated when cotton-based collection materials are used as opposed to samples collected by other methods (i.e. passive drool).〔Shirtcliff, Elizabeth A., Douglas A. Granger, Eve Schwartz, and Mary J. Curran. "Use of Salivary Biomarkers in Biobehavioral Research: Cotton-based Sample Collection Methods Can Interfere with Salivary Immunoassay Results." Psychoneuroendocrinology 26.2 (2001): 165-73. Elsevier. Web.〕 Researchers are currently examining the expanding role of saliva testing as part of routine dental or medical office examinations where saliva collection is simple to perform.〔 抄文引用元・出典: フリー百科事典『 ウィキペディア（Wikipedia）』 ■ウィキペディアで「Saliva testing」の詳細全文を読む スポンサード リンク
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