Dental caries is an
oral pathology associated with both lifestyle and genetic factors. The caries process can be influenced by salivary composition, which includes
ions and
proteins. Studies have described associations between
salivary protein polymorphisms and
dental caries experience, while others have shown no association with
salivary proteins genetic variability. The aim of this study is to assess the influence of
salivary protein polymorphisms on the risk of
dental caries by means of a systematic review of the current literature. An electronic search was performed in PubMed, Scopus, and Virtual Health Library. The following search terms were used: "dental caries susceptibility," "
dental caries," "polymorphism, genetics," "saliva," "
proteins," and "
peptides." Related MeSH headings and free terms were included. The inclusion criteria comprised clinical investigations of subjects with and without caries. After application of these eligibility criteria, the selected articles were qualified by assessing their methodological quality. Initially, 338 articles were identified from the electronic databases after exclusion of duplicates. Exclusion criteria eliminated 322 articles, and 16 remained for evaluation. Eleven articles found a consistent association between
salivary protein polymorphisms and risk of
dental caries, for
proteins related to antimicrobial activity (
beta defensin 1 and
lysozyme-like
protein), pH control (
carbonic anhydrase VI), and bacterial colonization/adhesion (
lactotransferrin,
mucin, and
proline-rich
protein Db). This systematic review demonstrated an association between genetic polymorphisms and risk of
dental caries for most of the
salivary proteins.