Immune Peptide Shows Potential to Help Diagnose Oral Cancer

A team of NIDCR supported scientists discovered something quite interesting about cultured oral keratinocytes, cells that form the lining of the mouth and its soft tissues. The scientists confirmed that when pathogens challenge oral keratinocytes, these cells produce a variety of short antimicrobial peptides called β-defensins. What made the discovery interesting is that the β-defensins were differentially expressed when exposed to different immune signaling molecules. The implication being, not all β-defensin responses are the same. This finding matched up well with the many tasks that these peptides perform, from serving as the keratinocyte’s first line of defense to signaling nearby white blood cells to attack an invading pathogen. The finding also made sense on the DNA level. Defensins arise from 28 putative DNA coding regions that could be variably transcribed to suit the cell’s immediate needs. As members of the group later wrote, “This heterogeneity suggests that different phenotypic profiles exist that may affect an individual’s susceptibility or resistance to disease.”

For complete article: http://www.nidcr.nih.gov/Research/ResearchResults/ScienceBriefs/Archive/SNIB2009/September/Peptide.htm

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