A team of scientists discovered a new organ in the human body while studying something completely different.
Dutch experts made a scientific breakthrough on the other side of the body while studying prostate cancer.
It turns out that this recently discovered organ has always been right under our noses, or more precisely, right behind them.
A team of scientists working at the Netherlands Cancer Research Institute conducted a series of CT and PET scans on patients who had been injected with radioactive glucose.
They weren’t just doing this for no reason, as the glucose makes the tumor glow on the scan, making it easy to detect.
This new organ was only discovered in 2020 and has been under our noses for a long time. (YouTube/Antoni van Leeuwenhoek)
It works by binding to PSMA, a protein more frequently found in prostate cancer cells.
Luckily, the PSMA protein is also very good at detecting salivary glands, and lo and behold, when looking at the results, experts noticed that some dots inside the human head were also glowing.
This leads them to expect that salivary glands are contained within it, and it is thought that these particular glands are placed to lubricate the upper part of the throat behind the nose and mouth. .
After a little more digging, the research team discovered what they called the “fallopian salivary glands.” It is located at the back of the nose, near where the nasal cavity meets the throat.
It’s basically right behind your face, and by testing 100 patients, scientists confirmed that you didn’t just get lucky once.
Like the pair of cadavers the research team examined, they all had “tubal-salivary glands,” so they were convinced that meant we all had salivary glands.
These are where the salivary glands are located. (Netherlands Cancer Institute)
In a bit of scientific coincidence, when radiation therapy is given to a patient’s head or neck, doctors try to keep it as far away from the salivary glands as this can damage them and cause the patient to have problems swallowing, eating, and speaking. Masu.
On the other hand, before the gland was discovered, that part of the body was the subject of radiation therapy, which may have caused unintended side effects such as dry mouth after treatment.
There are three other major salivary glands in the human body, all located in the head, but one salivary gland is the fallopian tube gland.
The parotid gland is a major gland that supplies saliva that helps us chew and swallow food.
The submandibular gland is located under the lower jaw and is responsible for most of the saliva in the mouth. You can see it is slightly above the Adam’s apple, about 2 inches away.
Finally, and perhaps most importantly, there are sublingual glands under your tongue that are just doing what they can to help themselves.
Featured image credit: YouTube/Antoni Van Leeuwenhoek/Netherlands Cancer Institute
Topic: Health, Science, Technology
