Scientists Just Discovered a Previously Unknown Organ Lurking in The Centre of The Human Head

Came across this neat little medical discovery. A team of cancer researchers have discovered a fourth major salivary gland located behind the nasal cavities in the middle of the human head. Because of its inaccessible location, the gland has gone unnoticed over centuries of research.

It's pretty cool we're still making such large discoveries in the human body, you'd think the head would be one of those thoroughly studied things, and there wouldn't be any large organs hidden in there, but I guess there was at least one.

www.sciencealert.com...

Medical researchers have made a surprise anatomical discovery, finding what looks to be a mysterious set of salivary glands hidden inside the human head – which somehow have been missed by scientists for centuries up until now.

www.sciencedirect.com...

The presence of previously unnoticed bilateral macroscopic salivary gland locations in the human nasopharynx was suspected after visualization by positron emission tomography/computed tomography with prostate-specific membrane antigen ligands (PSMA PET/CT). 

The tubarial glands structure, indicated by blue arrows, alongside other major salivary glands in orange.

"People have three sets of large salivary glands, but not there," explains radiation oncologist Wouter Vogel from the Netherlands Cancer Institute.

"As far as we knew, the only salivary or mucous glands in the nasopharynx are microscopically small, and up to 1,000 are evenly spread out throughout the mucosa. So, imagine our surprise when we found these."

The new discovery made by Vogel's team is much larger, showing what appears to be a previously overlooked pair of glands – ostensibly the fourth set of major salivary glands – located behind the nose and above the palate, close to the centre of the human head.

As for how the glands haven't previously been identified, the researchers suggest the structures are found at a poorly accessible anatomical location under the skull base, making them hard to make out endoscopically. It's possible duct openings could have been noticed, they say, but might not have been noticed for what they are, being part of a larger gland system.

This is something new I have not yet seen. I wonder what these salivary glands are used for, do they create a different type of saliva or something? They appear to be coming down where the nose hits the throat area into the nasal cavity end. I would think they are there for a purpose, but exactly what is the purpose?.

Good find OP, this interests me. Location of a gland is not random, where it is might have some important reason it is there. Could this actually be causing problems in some people if it isn't working right? Does this saliva actually help protect us from infection in the location the air flows through when we breath through our nose?

Considering all the different types of scans and residual/resonance imaging we can do on the brain, this is quite remarkable, great find👍🏼👍🏼

originally posted by: rickymouse
This is something new I have not yet seen. I wonder what these salivary glands are used for, do they create a different type of saliva or something? They appear to be coming down where the nose hits the throat area into the nasal cavity end. I would think they are there for a purpose, but exactly what is the purpose?.

Good find OP, this interests me. Location of a gland is not random, where it is might have some important reason it is there. Could this actually be causing problems in some people if it isn't working right? Does this saliva actually help protect us from infection in the location the air flows through when we breath through our nose?

It’s pretty obvious that these are not salivary glands, they are venom glands. Now we just have to learn how to use them.

originally posted by: ManSizedSquirrel

originally posted by: rickymouse
This is something new I have not yet seen. I wonder what these salivary glands are used for, do they create a different type of saliva or something? They appear to be coming down where the nose hits the throat area into the nasal cavity end. I would think they are there for a purpose, but exactly what is the purpose?.

Good find OP, this interests me. Location of a gland is not random, where it is might have some important reason it is there. Could this actually be causing problems in some people if it isn't working right? Does this saliva actually help protect us from infection in the location the air flows through when we breath through our nose?

It’s pretty obvious that these are not salivary glands, they are venom glands. Now we just have to learn how to use them.

Being a mouse, I learn a lot from squirrels.

a reply to: ManSizedSquirrel

Hopefully it's something like this:

a reply to: ManSizedSquirrel

Best reply.

is it me or isn't that the same region they are currently shoving millions of cotton buds and poking around to get ....
Mucus.

Seems strange thing to find.

a reply to: dug88
I bet it's the gland that secretes D-M-T when we die to make the journey into rebirth a bit less dull. A big chunk of the mammalian family has '___' present in their brains, humans included.

I speculate these glands are the source of such secretions! It could also be where our souls are hiding.

a reply to: dug88

Pretty darn interesting.

Does that mean that at no time in modern medical history has these glands become inflamed or infected or blocked by anything in order to draw attention to themselves?

How do we know everybody has this organ?

Maybe only alien-human hybrids and zombies have it.

We need to find out which other species have this organ and how they use it.

originally posted by: puzzled2
is it me or isn't that the same region they are currently shoving millions of cotton buds and poking around to get ....
Mucus.

Seems strange thing to find.

Had the same thought myself!

Rainbows
Jane

a reply to: puzzled2

that is the same question I asked my self when I saw the location, that is interesting, we need an answer

originally posted by: rickymouse

originally posted by: ManSizedSquirrel

originally posted by: rickymouse
This is something new I have not yet seen. I wonder what these salivary glands are used for, do they create a different type of saliva or something? They appear to be coming down where the nose hits the throat area into the nasal cavity end. I would think they are there for a purpose, but exactly what is the purpose?.

Good find OP, this interests me. Location of a gland is not random, where it is might have some important reason it is there. Could this actually be causing problems in some people if it isn't working right? Does this saliva actually help protect us from infection in the location the air flows through when we breath through our nose?

It’s pretty obvious that these are not salivary glands, they are venom glands. Now we just have to learn how to use them.

Being a mouse, I learn a lot from squirrels.

Well you people did cause the black plague so don't sell yourself too short.

Cool find!

Must be for keeping the throat wet for swallowing, and aid in digestions as the food is going down to the stomach perhaps a catalyst enzyme?

originally posted by: ManSizedSquirrel
It’s pretty obvious that these are not salivary glands, they are venom glands. Now we just have to learn how to use them.

Or maybe they produce something flammable and are remnants of our fire-breathing dragon past.

Rrrrrrrrrrrrrrrraaaaaaaaaarrrrrrrrrrrrrr!

originally posted by: nerbot

originally posted by: ManSizedSquirrel
It’s pretty obvious that these are not salivary glands, they are venom glands. Now we just have to learn how to use them.

Or maybe they produce something flammable and are remnants of our fire-breathing dragon past.

Rrrrrrrrrrrrrrrraaaaaaaaaarrrrrrrrrrrrrr!

Yes!!!

a reply to: rickymouse
Right, I’m wondering if it’s some sort of antibacteria gland from air particles or food particles, maybe it’s to help prevent those nasty tonsils stones some people get.

Maybe it BEYOND astounding ! Really Humans spent a 100 YEARS researching every last thing about our self down to DECODING ALL our DNA even and somehow EVEN with MMRS and x ray teck and a 100 other ways we Missed this gland OVER a INCH LONG so its not even small .

Frankly I was SHOCKED when I read about this .

It makes me wonder Just what else we WILL find as time goes on .

Good nature found a way to create a natural antibacterial repellent for covid19, "glandulae covid odiose confabricatus"