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Updated: Aug 7, 2026

Oral Biofilm Sampling for Microbiome Analysis in Healthy Children
Published on: December 31, 2017
Kynurenic acid in human saliva--does it influence oral microflora?
Damian Kuc1, Mansur Rahnama, Tomasz Tomaszewski
1Department of Clinical and Experimental Pharmacology, Medical University, Jaczewskiego 8, PL 20-090 Lublin, Poland.
Abstract:
Kynurenic acid (KYNA) is an endogenous antagonist of alpha7 nicotinic receptors and all ionotropic glutamate receptors. Its neuroprotective activity has been suggested. In this study, the presence of KYNAin human saliva and its potential bactericidal role was investigated. KYNAwas found in all samples of human saliva with mean concentration of 3.4 nM. The concentration of KYNA in saliva obtained from patients with odontogenic abscesses was 3.5 times higher than in healthy subjects. We have shown that the human gingival fibroblasts produce KYNAand an inflammatory stimulant, lipopolysaccharide, enhanced its synthesis in vitro. The bactericidal effect of KYNA was also presented. We hypothesize that KYNA may contribute to the control of oral microflora.
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