We talked with Dr. Glogauer (Michael) about saliva, his new diagnostic!!!!!!!!!!, and the issue of inflammation. 

The Questions we had for him:

You’re currently working on a chair side device that measures inflammation-

1. What started you on the path to developing this device?
2. What do you think the benefit will be for the providers using this assay?
3. What is the most surprising thing you learned during the development process?
4. Most salivary diagnostics outside of infectious disease run up against the issue of person to person variability, especially around inflammatory cytokines. How is your device different or how have you been able to address this common issue? 
5. One of the most compelling pieces of your work is your observation that oral inflammation is intimately tied to the immune profile of the circulating cells. Can you tell us more about your work in this space?
6. Do you think there is a role for your chair side assay in tracking circulatory health?
7. There is currently a lot of activity in diagnostics for analysis of the oral microbiome. I have my skepticism but I do see a potential to create a more robust opportunity by mixing the two tests- inflammation and microbiome analysis. The way I see it is this: oral inflammation can drive dysbiosis and create potential for chronic pathology and therefore, if you have a positive inflammation test with a micro test that shows increase to pathogen profile, risk for progression of pathology is certain. However, I am still unsure if we really need to know exactly which bacteria are present. I think of inflammation as the primary driver. Can you tell us your thoughts on combining tests - how they might be (or not) useful for the clinician and/or patient?

Additional Questions:

1. Do you think there are potential applications for this salivary Dx beyond oral health? (e.g. fitness/recovery assay for professional athletes)
2. Could you share some insights into what inspired your journey as an entrepreneurial research physician?
3. How do you envision the realm of dentistry and oral health will look in 2050? What do you think are the biggest challenges oral health faces during this window of time?
4. How long have you played bass guitar? Are you in a band?