Sivaraman Prakasam, associate professor and head of the Department of Periodontics, is investigating a particular group of proteins that discriminates between good and bad bacteria in a person’s gingiva (gum) and mouth to modulate the body’s immune response. His research could lead to new tools that can prevent or treat periodontitis.

Sivaraman Prakasam has joined the dental faculty at Iowa and been named chair of periodontics. With a strong department under Prakasam’s leadership, the Department of Periodontics will continue to excel in clinical care, teaching, and research.

Huojun Cao and Eric Van Otterloo are investigating the genetic underpinnings of tooth development. The long-term goal of their work is to better understand tooth development so that new regenerative treatments for teeth can be developed.

Robert Bowers, Sukirth Ganesan, and Aline Petrin were each selected as 2023 Mentors of the Years by the Dental Student Research Group. Follow the link for photos of all three awardees with their students.

The Academy of Osseointegration awarded I-Ching (Izzie) Wang, clinical assistant professor of periodontics, and Anvita Maharishi, assistant professor of family dentistry, a $30,000 translational and clinical science research grant for their project, Correlation Between Peri-implant Mucosa Color and Tissue Dynamics: Phenotype and Health Recognition Using Dental Ultrasonography.

The National Institutes of Health awarded Shaoping Zhang, assistant professor of periodontics, and his team a 5-year, $1.95 million R01 grant to assess and understand the role of type I interferon (IFN-I) in periodontal disease. This major research project is part of Iowa Dentistry’s efforts to advance research and discovery—producing novel translational research that can treat those who suffer from periodontitis.

The 2022 American Academy of Periodontology (AAP) held its 108th Annual Meeting in Phoenix, Arizona from October 27 to October 30. The University of Iowa Department of Periodontics had excellent participation with numerous invited speakers and recognitions.

The Osteology Foundation awarded I-Ching Wang, associate professor of periodontics, an almost $30K Young Researcher Grant for her project, Ultrasound-based Imaging to Detect Early Changes of Hard and Soft tissue Around Immediately Placed Implants With or Without Soft Tissue Augmentation.

Emilio Couso-Queiruga, a resident in periodontics, received the 2022 Mentor of the Year Award by students in the University of Iowa Dental Student Research Group.

Second-year dental students Frank Boksa and Mary Young have been awarded NIH Summer Dental Student Research Awards to conduct research at the National Institute for Dental and Craniofacial Research in Maryland.