Histologic markers and functional impairment in lacrimal and salivary glands in Sjögren's syndrome

• Grant number: 14/16331-9
• Support Opportunities: Scholarships in Brazil - Post-Doctoral
• Start date: November 01, 2014
• End date: October 31, 2016
• Field of knowledge: Health Sciences - Medicine - Medical Clinics
• Agreement: Coordination of Improvement of Higher Education Personnel (CAPES)
• Principal Investigator: Eduardo Melani Rocha
• Grantee: Carolina Maria Módulo Ávila
• Host Institution: Faculdade de Medicina de Ribeirão Preto (FMRP). Universidade de São Paulo (USP). Ribeirão Preto , SP, Brazil

Abstract

Tears and saliva play multiple roles in health. These secretions moisten, lubricate, nourish and protect the ocular surface and mouth, respectively. The tears helps in vision and saliva in speech and swallowing food . Moreover, both control microbial populations and promote the renovation and repair of tissues. Therefore, the lacrimal and salivary dysfunction, or a combination of both may affect the visual, oral and systemic health, and the quality of life. Such dysfunctions are the result of numerous clinical conditions whose pathophysiological mechanisms are still poorly understood and the limited therapeutic possibilities.Sjögren's syndrome (SS) is an autoimmune exocrinopathy that primarily affects the lacrimal and salivary glands. Although the disease was described in 1933, a series of unanswered questions persist, concerning the causes, the progression rate of the secretory dysfunction, ocular, oral and systemic complications associated with xerostomia in autoimmune and non-autoimmune disorders, dysregulation of B lymphocytes and parameters of worsening or improvement. Moreover, more accurate estimates of the incidence of the development of lymphoma and other co-morbidities in this syndrome are needed.The general purposes of this study are multidisciplinary, comparative of clinical, histologic and molecular parameters monitoring of patients with SS and non SS regarding to changes on the lacrimal glands, ocular surface, salivary glands, arthropathy, endocrine abnormalities and other manifestations, to document the natural history and identify the causes and the patterns of SS progress. (AU)