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Our study of salivary gland structure and function relies on our ability to study the organ in its native environment. To scale those needs to a laboratory setting, researchers have created in vitro models that replicate the salient features of the gland, but these are inevitably tied to the abilities of current technologies and may require some compromises along the way. In this chapter, we discuss key features of the gland that would be desired in a model and the potential intersection of those needs with advances in the field of tissue engineering. The application of these new technologies, along with improvements in imaging and phenotype reporting, holds the promise of significantly impacting salivary diagnostics through continual improvements in the accuracy and scalability of laboratory models.

Hypoxia-independent high levels of immunoreactive erythropoietin (Ep) were measured in salivary gland tissues of adult rats. The presence of Ep in the salivary gland appears to be age-related, the result of accumulation, and under sex steroid control. The salivary gland does not, therefore, appear to be an extrarenal source of Ep. Removal of the salivary gland tissue impairs, but does not alleviate, renal Ep production during hypoxic stress. Insulin-like growth factor 1 (IGF1) or ovine growth hormone (oGH) were partially able to restore Ep production in hypoxic kidney tissue after either salivary gland ablation or hypophysectomy.