Emerging salivary biomarkers for early detection of oral squamous cell carcinoma

Table 3 Summary of studies on salivary biomarkers for oral squamous cell carcinoma detection

Biomarker	Sample type	Method	Sample size	Key findings	Ref.
DNA & RNA biomarkers
TP53 mutation	Saliva	qPCR	OSCC (n = 50), controls (n = 50)	Significant mutation detected in OSCC patients	Cristaldi et al[35], 2019
MiRNA-21	Saliva	RT-PCR	OSCC (n = 40), controls (n = 40)	Elevated levels associated with tumor progression	Van Der Hofstadt et al[36], 2024
CDKN2A methylation	Saliva	NGS	OSCC (n = 60), controls (n = 60)	Hypermethylation observed in OSCC samples	Cui et al[37], 2021
Metabolites
Spermidine	Saliva	Mass spectrometry	OSCC (n = 30), controls (n = 30)	Elevated levels in OSCC patients	Er et al[38], 2015
Choline	Saliva	LC-MS	OSCC (n = 50), controls (n = 50)	Altered metabolic profile linked to cancer progression	Zhang et al[39], 2012
Microbiota
Fusobacterium nucleatum	Saliva	16S rRNA sequencing	OSCC (n = 45), controls (n = 45)	Increased abundance in OSCC patients	Kostic et al[40], 2013
Porphyromonas gingivalis	Saliva	qPCR	OSCC (n = 40), controls (n = 40)	Strong correlation with cancer presence	Michaud et al[41], 2017

This table summarizes key clinical studies investigating salivary biomarkers for the detection of oral squamous cell carcinoma, categorized into DNA/RNA biomarkers, metabolites, and microbiota. For each biomarker, the table includes the sample type, detection methods, sample size, key findings, and relevant references. These studies highlight the diagnostic potential of various biomarkers, with an emphasis on their utility for detecting oral squamous cell carcinoma at early stages and contributing to personalized treatment strategies. qPCR: Quantitative polymerase chain reaction; RT-PCR: Reverse transcription polymerase chain reaction; NGS: Next-generation sequencing; LC-MS: Liquid chromatography-mass spectrometry; OSCC: Oral squamous cell carcinoma; 16S rRNA: 16S ribosomal RNA.