Studies on the Human Specificity of Salivary Amylase

Research Project

Project/Area Number	61570289
Research Category	Grant-in-Aid for General Scientific Research (C)
Allocation Type	Single-year Grants
Research Field	Legal medicine
Research Institution	Nagoya City University (1987-1988) Gifu University (1986)
Principal Investigator	IWASA Mineo Nagoya City University, Lecturer, 医学部, 講師 (00021452)
Co-Investigator(Kenkyū-buntansha)	OHYA Isao Gifu University, Professor, 医学部, 教授 (80021393)
Project Period (FY)	1986 – 1988
Project Status	Completed (Fiscal Year 1988)
Budget Amount *help	¥2,000,000 (Direct Cost: ¥2,000,000) Fiscal Year 1988: ¥300,000 (Direct Cost: ¥300,000) Fiscal Year 1987: ¥500,000 (Direct Cost: ¥500,000) Fiscal Year 1986: ¥1,200,000 (Direct Cost: ¥1,200,000)
Keywords	Saliva / Amylase / 種属特異性
Research Abstract	Amylase activities were detected significantly in saliva from human, macaques and rodents and slightly in the vegetable and fruit extracts. Dried stains on filter paper prepared from human saliva, mammalian saliva, vegetable extracts and fruit extracts were subjected to starch-iodine test and blue starch polymer-agar test. Both tests showed positive reactions with the macaque and rodent saliva as well as human saliva, but the vegetable and fruit stains showed positive reactions only with the starch-iodine test. Antisera against amylase isolated from the human submaxillary glands were prepared in rabbits. When the antisera were absorbed with human serum and seminal plasma, resulting antisera reacted only with saliva (specific antisera to saliva). In double immunodiffusion test with the specific antisera, human and macaque saliva produced precipitation lines. When the specific antisera were absorbed with Japanese monkey saliva, resulting antisera reacted only with human saliva (specific antisera to human saliva). Specific antisera to saliva reacted with saliva diluted up to 1:128 and with extracts of the stains aged for up to 3 weeks. However, the specific antisera to human saliva reacted with saliva diluted up to 1:8 and with extracts of the stains aged for up to 1 week. In conclusion, amylase activities may be widely found in animals and plants other than human saliva. The starch-iodine test and blue starch-polymer agar test can not differentiate human salivary amylase from those of other sources. On the other hand, specific antisera to human saliva have proved to be very useful in identifying the human saliva or salivary stains because this antisera could differentiate between human salive and the saliva of other animals including macaques.