University at Buffalo (UB)
Sebastiano Andreana, DDS, MS
Associate Professor and Director, Implant Dentistry, Department of Restorive Dentistry
Projects focus on all aspects of implant dentistry, including retrospective and prospective studies, behavioral studies, in addition to laboratory, in vitro, and in vivo studies. Additional projects focus on Dental Lasers and OTC products.
Praveen Arany, B.D.S, M.D.S, M.M.Sc., Ph.D.
Associate Professor, Department of Oral Biology
Research in Arany lab is focused on clinical translation for wound healing and tissue regeneration. His group uses cell-molecular biology, biomaterials, and biomedical technologies, especially biophotonics and other directed energy approaches to modulate biological mechanisms. The major goal of their research is exploring fundamental understanding of biological regulation to control therapeutic clinical outcomes.
Robert E. Cohen, D.D.S., M.S., Ph.D.
Professor, Departments of Periodontology and Oral Biology
Our laboratory is studying the immunochemistry and cellular biochemistry of inflammatory and neoplastic diseases of the salivary glands, perio-dontal tissues, and other related structures such as kidney and skin. The goals of our research are to identify regulatory mechanisms important in gingival and salivary gland inflammation, to assist in the diagnosis and management of poorly differentiated salivary gland tumors, and to provide a foundation for genetic and pharmaceutical therapy of these disorders.
Heidi Crow, DMD, MS
Associate Professor and Chair, Department of Oral Diagnostic Sciences
Research interests: Temporomandibular disorders (TMD) and Burning Mouth Syndrome. Specifically in TMD I am interested in imaging characteristics of the TMJ and am involved in TMD treatment protocols.
Elaine L. Davis, Ph.D.
Professor, Departments of Oral Diagnostic Sciences
Current research focuses on access to care, dental student attitudes, and attitudes and behaviors related to oral health.
Patricia Diaz:
Sunstar Robert J. Genco Endowed Chair; SUNY Empire Innovation Professor, Department of Oral Biology
Department of Oral BiologyMy research program focuses on the oral microbiome. My laboratory uses clinical studies, genomics, computational biology and model systems to study the processes that lead to dysbiosis of the oral microbiome. Our goal is to understand community dynamics and develop tools to manipulate the microbiome thereby interfering with disease development. We are particularly interested in understanding the significance of the microbiome as a mediator of susceptibility to oral comorbidities of cancer treatment and as an essential trigger in periodontal disease. We also investigate the potential for the salivary microbiome to serve as a biomarker for oral and systemic conditions.
Rosemary M. Dziak, Ph.D.
Professor, Department of Oral Biology
Research is concerned with the cellular regulation of bone metabolism with emphasis on the mechanics of physiological and pathological bone loss. The role of intracellular mediators in the control of bone formation and resorption is studied directly using enriched populations of osteoblastic and osteoclastic cells isolated from rat calvaria. The effects of various bone resorptive and formative agents on changes in calcium uptake and nucleotide production, as well as prostaglandin and calmodulin in the mediation of hormonal effects.
Mira Edgerton, D.D.S., Ph.D.
Research Professor, Departments of Restorative Dentistry and Oral Biology
Innate immunity and antimicrobial defense mechanisms. Oral candidiasis is an increasing health issue. Incidence of oropharyngeal candidiasis has increased dramatically in the past 20 years due to increased antibiotic and pharmaceutic drug use and longer survival of people with compromised immune systems and cancer patients. Mortality from systemic C. albicans infections in immunocompromised patients is nearly 30%, even with aggressive treatment with antifungal drugs. These data point to a pressing need for improved drug therapies or means of enhancing innate immune mechanisms in immunocompromised and cancer patients. Understanding mechanisms by which salivary antimicrobial proteins exert candidacidal activity and use of these bioactive peptides as therapeutic agents has been the objective of our research program.
Yoly Gonzalez-Stucker, DDS, MS
Associate Professor, Department of Oral Diagnostic Sciences
Dr. Gonzalez’s interests lie in the field of Temporomandibular Disorders (TMD) and Orofacial Pain conditions; more specifically, in the areas of examiner training, reliability, assessment and diagnosis of these disorders. She continues to participate as co-investigator in multicenter studies addressing the diagnostic systems for TMD, longitudinal studies evaluating risk factors for the development of TMD and Orofacial Pain, and evaluation of biomechanics characteristics of the TMJ. In addition, she is involved in treatment modalities used in the management of TMD.
Violet Haraszthy, DDS, PhD
Professor, Department of Oral Biology
Dr. Haraszthy’s research is mainly focuses on product testing, such as toothpastes mouthrinses. Most of these studies have a clinical component. The subjects would use the assigned product for a period of time or a control product and we obtain samples such as saliva, plaque from the subject’s mouth and perform a clinical exam. We also test these products in the laboratory for their effectiveness under in vitro condition. We test their effects on biofilm formation, of eliminating biofilm and killing oral bacteria. We are also involved in the identification of halitosis (bad breath) associated bacteria and testing products for effective treatment of this condition. Periimplantitis treatment is also an ongoing project. We grow biofilm on titanium discs and test various methods to eliminate the biofilm from the surfaces of the discs. We use electro-microscope to look at the surfaces before and after treatment. We also use culturing techniques to evaluate the effectiveness of the treatment.
Laertis Ikonomou PhD
Associate Professor, Department of Oral Biology
The goals of our research are: a) to understand cell fate decisions and patterning during in vivo and in vitro early development and b) to define the biomechanical determinants of such fate decisions. We seek to apply this knowledge to in vitro directed differentiation of human induced pluripotent stem cells (iPSCs) for optimal derivation of clinically relevant lineages, such as oral mucosal epithelial cells, odontoblasts, ameloblasts, airway basal cells, type II alveolar epithelial cells, and follicular thyroid cells.
Anne Kathryn Kauffman PhD
Assistant Professor, Department of Oral Biology
Our research focus is on understanding how viruses that infect bacteria (called phages) interact with their hosts, and how these interactions shape the ecological, evolutionary, and functional properties of bacteria and microbial communities. We use cultivation- and sequencing-based approaches to study phages in the context of microbial communities (including the oral microbiome), with the aim of uncovering the molecular underpinnings of system-level properties.
Jason Kay, PhD
Assistant Professor, Department of Oral Biology
The focus of the Kay lab is to increase our understanding of the cell biology of macrophages and dendritic cells, important players in all innate immune responses, including those that occur within the oral environment. Our studies focus on the mechanisms of the maturation, and cross-talk with other cellular processes, of phagocytosis, as well as the interactions between macrophages/DCs and oral microorganisms and how such microorganisms can alter the phagocytic process and maturation. We rely on a variety of techniques, including flow cytometry, microscopy, biochemistry, microbiology and molecular biology. Increasing our understanding of macrophage/DC and oral microbe interactions will increase our ability to effectively prevent and treat oral infections and their effects on systemic diseases.
Michelle Kay (Visser), PhD
Assistant Professor, Department of Oral Biology
The oral cavity is a unique environment, with large numbers of bacteria present as a polymicrobial biofilm in close contact with host tissues including epithelial cells, connective cells and underlying immune cells. One group of bacteria associated with this biofilm are oral spirochetes, such as Treponema denticola. One area of research in my laboratory focuses on determining how T. denticola and other spirochetes remain “under the radar” to evade the normally protective neutrophil response and impair associated key cellular processes such as directed cell migration (chemotaxis) and actin dynamics.
Hyeongil Kim, DDS
Associate Professor, Department of Restorative Dentistry
Prosthetics and biomaterials
Jill Kramer, DDS, PhD
Assistant Professor, Department of Oral Biology
Dr. Kramer focuses her research on autoimmune conditions affecting the oral cavity. Present Research Interests include Initiating events in the development of Sjogren's syndrome with emphasis on innate immune dysregulation; B cell dysfunction in Sjogren's syndrome; Identification and targeting of chemotactic factors that contribute to disease pathogenesis.
Hyuk-Jae Edward Kwon, D.D.S., Ph.D.
Assistant Professor, Department of Oral Biology
Dr. Kwon is a dentist-scientist with a unique background of a combination of dual doctoral degrees (a D.D.S. and a Ph.D. in Dental/Craniofacial Development). Research activities in Dr. Kwon's lab focuses on the genetic and epigenetic control of mammalian dental and craniofacial development and pathogenesis, with a specific emphasis on congenital dental anomalies and orofacial clefts. The lab uses developmental mouse genetics, experimental embryology, molecular biology, and genomic approaches to dissect the molecular mechanisms that control dental and craniofacial organogenesis.
Willard D. McCall, Jr., Ph.D.
Professor, Department of Oral Diagnostic Sciences
Research in this laboratory deals with neurophysiologic and bioengineering issues that impact on our understanding of jaw function and on the etiology, diagnosis, and treatment of temporomandibular disorders. Special emphasis is given to the trigeminal neuromuscular system. Research interests include: electromyographic (EMG) studies of normal subjects and TMD patients; electrical activity of trigger points; computer processing of electro- myographic data; bite force measurements; and computer modeling of TMJ loading.
Richard Ohrbach, D.D.S, Ph.D.
Professor, Department of Oral Diagnostic Sciences
Our current research includes experimental psychophysiological approaches to understanding the role of cognitive and affective components of stress as they relate to chronic pain experience and chronicity. This experimental work also includes methodological approaches that are more phenomenological in nature. We are also interested in methods of assessing masticatory behavior from the perspective of central control as influenced by cognitive and emotional states, and how that behavior within the masticatory system might be generalizable to motor systems elsewhere in the body impacted by pain experience, such as the lower back. Included with these experimental approaches is some emphasis on more basic methodological issues such as muscle activity measurement. We are also interested in clinical research: (1) ecological models of symptom change and longitudinal outcomes in TMD pain, and what factors influence those outcomes; (2) the statistical problem of how to manage longitudinal data analyses; (3) clinical assessment of pain disorders, and (4) validity of diagnostic taxonomic systems.
Rose-Anne Romano, PhD
Assistant Professor, Department of Oral Biology
My laboratory is interested in understanding the regulatory mechanisms of cell fate and lineage choices of epithelial stem and progenitor cells. We utilize genetic and genomic approaches to better understand tumorigenesis in tissues of the oral cavity and salivary glands.
Stephan Ruhl, DDS
Professor, Department of Oral Biology
Research in my laboratory encompasses the general area of oral infection and immunity with a major focus on adhesin-mediated interactions of oral bacteria with host salivary or cellular receptors. We investigate the proteins in saliva that are recognized by lectin-like microbial adhesins. It is our long-term goal to better understand the modulating role of salivary glycoproteins in supporting tissue tropism of a benign commensal oral microflora to the human oral cavity and in host defense against pathogenic microorganisms.
Camila Sabatini, DDS, MS
Associate Professor, Department of Restorative Dentistry
Operative and Restorative Dentistry: Cosmetic dentistry, dental materials, techniques and research
Frank A. Scannapieco, D.M.D., Ph.D.
Professor and Chair, Department of Oral Biology
Basic Research - the major focus of this ongoing project is to determine the role of saliva in dental plaque formation. Specifically, we are interested in identifying and characterizing salivary components that interact significantly with numerically prominent dental plaque bacteria. Clinical Research - This project is directed toward understanding the role of oral hygiene in the pathogenesis of hospital acquired pneumonia. Associations are sought between oral hygiene status of hospitalized patients and colonization of dental plaque by respiratory pathogens. Further studies are directed toward determining the effect of oral hygiene measures on oral respiratory pathogen colonization. Ultimately, we hope to diminish the risk of pneumonia in these patients by improving oral hygiene.
Ashu Sharma, PhD
Professor, Department of Oral Biology
Sharma lab investigates bacteria that cause periodontitis. Two major areas are currently being pursued: (a) molecular-genetic analysis of the periodontal pathogen Tannerella forsythia to understand its physiology and biochemistry, and (b) investigation into the mechanisms by which periodontal pathogens evade host immune surveillance in order to colonize and survive in the subgingival environment.