Nitrator Lab

Over nearly three decades, our research program reframed inorganic nitrate from a suspected hazard into an endogenous protector that helps maintain whole-body homeostasis. It first showed that salivary glands—especially the parotid—actively uptake and secrete nitrate, thereby regulating systemic nitrate balance rather than passively mirroring blood levels. Building on stress-induced secretion and antimicrobial observations in the mouth, we identified the first mammalian plasma-membrane nitrate transporter (Sialin), establishing the cellular entry point for the NO₃⁻ → NO₂⁻ → NO pathway and redefining the molecular basis of nitrate metabolism.

Translational studies then demonstrated broad protective effects of dietary nitrate: guarding the stomach and intestine (including hypoxia and inflammatory models), restoring salivary-gland function and accelerating oral mucosal repair, rebalancing metabolism and the gut microbiome in obesity and metabolic syndrome, mitigating radiation injury and chemotherapy resistance, improving bone homeostasis, and supporting healthy ageing. These findings culminated in a homeostatic medicine framework centred on a nitrate–Sialin–Sialin2 axis, where Sialin mediates transport and Sialin2 functions as a nitrate sensor that links nitrate to mitochondrial, endosomal (PI3K–AKT–eNOS), and gene-regulatory signalling pathways. Together, they provide a coherent “transport–sense–respond” paradigm and a platform for next-generation nitrate-based therapeutics.