saliva

Secretions from several glands located within a persons mouth.

Saliva often contains enzymes which begin the digestion of food nice and early.

Your mouth produces a quart of saliva every day.

Saliva is a 5-man rock band, originating in Memphis, Tennessee. The band formed in September, 1996 when lead singer Josey Scott and guitarist Chris D'Abaldo hooked up. Later guitarist Wayne Swinny, drummer Paul Crosby, and bassist Dave Novotny joined to complete the lineup.

After finishing as national finalists in a competition sponsored by the National Academy of Recording Arts & Sciences, Saliva put out a self-titled independent debut album, which sold a modest 10,000 copies. Following the success of "Your Disease" on the Dracula 2000 soundtrack, Saliva released their first "real" album, Every Six Seconds .

The band features a heavy metal-esque sound with powerful lyrics, recognizable by Scott's deep voice and their fast, rap-like structure and pace.

Every Six Seconds: 1. Superstar 2. Musta Been Wrong 3. Click Click Boom 4. Your Disease 5. After Me 6. Greater Than/Less Than 7. Lackluster 8. Faultline 9. Beg 10. Hollywood 11. Doperide 12. My Goodbyes

Saliva is a key component to the oral environment since it plays a large part of anti-microbial actions and also acts as a way to provide for bacterial buildup on the teeth especially since it contains lysozyme, an anti-microbial enzyme that helps protect surfaces.

The pH of saliva is strictly controlled by a bicarbonate buffering system and is usually between 5.7 and 7.0, creating a relatively stable environment. The higher the pH of the oral cavity, the better the buffering capacity of the saliva. A low pH indicates susceptibility to the effects of acid production. The pH of the saliva also affects the types of bacteria that inhabit the oral cavity since most bacteria have a small pH range that they are tolerant to.

However, saliva contains many nutrients that promote bacterial growth and even with the antimicrobial substances, the presence of these and food from the host’s diet creates a favorable environment for bacteria. Info from:

Tortora, G.J., B.R.Funke, and C.L. Case, 2001. Microbiology: An Introduction, 7th edition. New York, New York.

Madigan, M.T., J.M. Martinko, and J. Parker, 2000. Biology of Microorganisms, 9th edition. Upper Saddle River, New Jersey.

Sa*li"va (?), n. [L.; cf. Gr. .] Physiol.

The secretion from the salivary glands.

⇒ In man the saliva is a more or less turbid and slighty viscid fluid, generally of an alkaline reaction, and is secreted by the parotid, submaxillary, and sublingual glands. In the mouth the saliva is mixed with the secretion from the buccal glands. The secretions from the individual salivary glands have their own special characteristics, and these are not the same in all animals. In man and many animals mixed saliva, i.e., saliva composed of the secretions of all three of the salivary glands, is an important degestive fluid on account of the presence of the peculiar enzyme, ptyalin.

 

© Webster 1913.