Mitophagy induction improves salivary gland stem/progenitor cell function by reducing senescence after irradiation.

Background And Purpose: Patients undergoing radiotherapy for head and neck cancer often experience a decline in their quality of life due to the co-irradiation of salivary glands. Radiation-induced cellular senescence is a key factor contributing to salivary gland dysfunction. Interestingly, mitochondrial dysfunction and cellular senescence have been reported to be strongly interconnected and thus implicated in several aging-related diseases.

Role of immediate early genes in the development of salivary gland organoids in polyisocyanopeptide hydrogels.

Human salivary gland organoids have opened tremendous possibilities for regenerative medicine in patients undergoing radiotherapy for the treatment of head and neck cancer. However, their clinical translation is greatly limited by the current use of Matrigel for organoid derivation and expansion. Here, we envisage that the use of a fully, synthetic hydrogel based on the oligo (-ethylene glycol) functionalized polymer polyisocyanopeptides (PICs) can provide an environment suitable for the generation and expansion of salivary gland organoids (SGOs) after optimization of PIC polymer properties.

The Hippo signaling pathway effector YAP promotes salivary gland regeneration after injury.

Salivary glands are damaged by radiotherapy for head and neck cancers, which often culminates in radiation-induced hyposalivation and xerostomia that may be permanent. Here, we identified a central role for YAP in the regenerative response of the salivary gland. Activation of the Hippo signaling pathway inhibits the phosphorylation of YAP, leading to its nuclear translocation and transcriptional activity.