Raja M, Nazzal H, Cyprian F S, Matoug-Elwerfelli M, Duggal M
Qatar University Health, College of Dental Medicine, Qatar University, Doha, Qatar.
Paediatric Dentistry, Hamad Medical Corporation, Doha, Qatar.
Eur Arch Paediatr Dent. 2025 Jan 18. doi: 10.1007/s40368-024-00994-4.
To review the current evidence on the association between salivary protein profile and dental caries in children during mixed dentition stage.
This systematic review followed the PRISMA 2020 guidelines. Searches were run in PubMed, Scopus and Embase along with gray literature. The searches were limited to studies on humans, published from inception to February 2024. Observational studies exploring correlations between salivary proteins and caries in children during mixed dentition (6-13 years) were included. The methodological quality of included studies was analyzed independently by two reviewers using the Joanna Briggs checklist and Newcastle-Ottawa scale, respectively followed by a qualitative synthesis.
A total of 17 primary studies were included. The studies recruited 1,330 subjects including 612 caries-active and 505 caries-free subjects. The total protein content was higher in caries-active subjects. Among the glycoproteins, IgA and MUC5B were higher in caries-free subjects while the levels of MUC7 were lower in the caries-free group. Antimicrobial peptides and proteinase-3 levels were also higher in caries-free subjects. Contradictory findings were reported for the association of α- amylase and carbonic anhydrase with caries status. The included studies were categorized as good quality (n = 4), fair quality (n = 12) and poor quality (n = 1).
Based on fair-quality studies included in this review and within its limitations, the findings revealed that salivary proteins may be associated with susceptibility to dental caries in mixed dentition. Total salivary proteins are upregulated in caries-active subjects while salivary IgA, antimicrobial peptides and proteinase-3 are increased in caries-free subjects.
The study protocol was registered in PROSPERO (registration number CRD42024517374).
回顾混合牙列期儿童唾液蛋白质谱与龋齿之间关联的现有证据。
本系统评价遵循PRISMA 2020指南。在PubMed、Scopus和Embase以及灰色文献中进行检索。检索限于从开始到2024年2月发表的关于人类的研究。纳入探索混合牙列期（6 - 13岁）儿童唾液蛋白质与龋齿之间相关性的观察性研究。两名评价者分别使用乔安娜·布里格斯检查表和纽卡斯尔 - 渥太华量表独立分析纳入研究的方法学质量，随后进行定性综合分析。
共纳入17项原始研究。这些研究招募了1330名受试者，包括612名患龋活跃者和505名无龋者。患龋活跃者的总蛋白质含量更高。在糖蛋白中，无龋者的IgA和MUC5B较高，而无龋组中MUC7的水平较低。无龋者的抗菌肽和蛋白酶 - 3水平也较高。关于α - 淀粉酶和碳酸酐酶与龋齿状况的关联报道了相互矛盾的结果。纳入的研究被分类为高质量（n = 4）、中等质量（n = 12）和低质量（n = 1）。
基于本评价纳入的中等质量研究及其局限性，研究结果表明唾液蛋白质可能与混合牙列期龋齿易感性相关。患龋活跃者的唾液总蛋白质上调，而无龋者的唾液IgA、抗菌肽和蛋白酶 - 3增加。
该研究方案已在PROSPERO注册（注册号CRD42024517374）。
