Department of Plastic and Reconstructive Surgery, Oslo University Hospital, 1171 Oslo, Norway.
The Norwegian Dry Eye Clinic, Ole Vigs Gate 32 E, 0366 Oslo, Norway.
Int J Mol Sci. 2021 Aug 20;22(16):8997. doi: 10.3390/ijms22168997.
The diagnostic work-up of primary Sjögren's syndrome (pSS) includes quantifying saliva and tear production, evaluation of autoantibodies in serum and histopathological analysis of minor salivary glands. Thus, the potential for further utilizing these fluids and tissues in the quest to find better diagnostic and therapeutic tools should be fully explored. Ten samples of saliva and tears from female patients diagnosed with pSS and ten samples of saliva and tears from healthy females were included for lipidomic analysis of tears and whole saliva using high-performance liquid chromatography coupled to time-of-flight mass spectrometry. In addition, lipidomic analysis was performed on minor salivary gland biopsies from three pSS and three non-SS females. We found significant differences in the lipidomic profiles of saliva and tears in pSS patients compared to healthy controls. Moreover, there were differences in individual lipid species in stimulated saliva that were comparable to those of glandular biopsies, representing an intriguing avenue for further research. We believe a comprehensive elucidation of the changes in lipid composition in saliva, tears and minor salivary glands in pSS patients may be the key to detecting pSS-related dry mouth and dry eyes at an early stage. The identified differences may illuminate the path towards future innovative diagnostic methodologies and treatment modalities for alleviating pSS-related sicca symptoms.
原发性干燥综合征（pSS）的诊断包括唾液和泪液分泌量的量化、血清自身抗体的评估以及小唾液腺的组织病理学分析。因此，应该充分探索进一步利用这些液体和组织来寻找更好的诊断和治疗工具的潜力。本研究纳入了 10 例女性 pSS 患者和 10 例健康女性的唾液和泪液样本，采用高效液相色谱-飞行时间质谱联用技术进行泪液和全唾液的脂质组学分析。此外，还对 3 例 pSS 患者和 3 例非 SS 患者的小唾液腺活检组织进行了脂质组学分析。我们发现 pSS 患者的唾液和泪液脂质组学图谱与健康对照组存在显著差异。此外，刺激唾液中的个别脂质种类存在差异，与腺活检相似，这是进一步研究的一个有趣途径。我们认为，全面阐明 pSS 患者唾液、泪液和小唾液腺中脂质组成的变化可能是早期检测 pSS 相关口干和眼干的关键。所鉴定的差异可能为未来创新的诊断方法和缓解 pSS 相关干燥症状的治疗方法指明方向。
