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Updated: Jul 16, 2026

Preparation of Rat Skeletal Muscle Homogenates for Nitrate and Nitrite Measurements
Published on: July 29, 2021
[Salivary nitrates. New perspectives concerning the physiological function of saliva]
M L'hirondel1, E Soubeyrand, J-L L'hirondel
1Service de médecine interne, CHU de Côte de Nacre, Caen, France.
Abstract:
For many years, nitrate ions have been thought to be "toxic agents", but scientific reality seems very different. The source of nitrate ions is double: exogenous and endogenous, and the metabolism of nitrates is partly salivary. The strong concentration of nitrate ions in saliva has many beneficial physiological effects. Salivary nitrate has anti-infectious effects on the oral cavity and all along the digestive tract. They give cardiovascular protection, are instrumental in the adaptive relaxation of the stomach by acting on smooth stomach muscles and have a protective action on the gastric mucosa.
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