Aspects of salivary gland radiosensitivity: effects of sialagogues and irradiation.

Rat submandibular glands were exposed to fractionated irradiation of 50 Gy, as given comparably in clinical practice. The induced changes were compared by giving only irradiation or radiation in conjunction with stimulating the salivary glands with cyclocytidine prior to treatment. Cyclocytidine is an alpha-adrenergic agonist that effectively depletes the serous cells of their granules and their heavy metal content. Findings in the present study show that the administration of the drug prior to each irradiation reduces the radiation-induced destruction in the epithelial cells in the submandibular gland.