Faculty, Students Win at International Dental Research Meeting
At the 2017 International Association of Dental Research (IADR) Annual Meeting, UNC School of Dentistry faculty and students were honored with multiple awards.
“We can all be proud of the many exceptional posters and oral talks by our faculty, students, postdocs and scholars,” said Eric Everett, associate dean for research. “Also, commendations to faculty who participated as oral session and symposia chairs, lunch and learn presenters, and a panelist during the NSRG career session. A highlight certainly has been our faculty and students being recognized for their hard work.”
Dr. Ashraf Fouad, chair of the Department of Endodontics, received the IADR Distinguished Scientist Award: Pulp Biology and Regeneration. This award recognizes a person who has significantly contributed to the body of knowledge in the field of pulp biology through basic or clinical research. It is supported by L.D. Caulk Division of DENTSPLY International and was established to recognize, encourage, and stimulate outstanding research contributions in the field of pulp biology.
Dr. Flavia Teles, research associate professor in the Department of Periodontology, was honored with the Women in Science Award for Distinguished Research. This award recognizes excellence in Oral/Dental/Craniofacial Research by a female researcher who is senior or first author on a research paper published between January 1, 2016 and October 31, 2016. That paper – authored by Furquim CP, Soares GM, Ribeiro LL, Azcarate-Peril MA, Butz N, Roach J, Moss K, Bonfim C, Torres-Pereira CC, Teles FR – was titled “The Salivary Microbiome and Oral Cancer Risk A Pilot Study in Fanconi Anemia” and was published in the Journal of Dental Research. This was a collaborative effort between UNC and Federal University of Paraná, Curitiba, PR, Brazil. The award is sponsored by the Women in Science Network.
Dr. Matthew Mason, first-year resident in the school’s Graduate Periodontology Program, was named the 2017 recipient of the IADR/Philips Oral Healthcare Young Investigator Research Grant. The grant provides seed funding for a post-doctoral student who is within 12 months of successfully completing a PhD. It is sponsored by Philips Oral Healthcare and awarded by the IADR Periodontal Research Group. The grant will allow Mason to begin collaborating with Dr. Iain Chapple, a world leader in innate immunity in the oral cavity. Mason will also be able to receive training at the Chapple Laboratory at the University of Birmingham in the United Kingdom during summer 2017.
Danielle Burgess, DDS Candidate 2020, received the 2017 American Association of Dental Research (AADR) Student Research Day Award. This award encourages academic institutions involved in dental, oral, and craniofacial research to recognize the best presentation at an academic institution’s research day competition. Her award consisted of complimentary registration to the IADR meeting and $500 towards her travel expenses to attend the meeting.
Shannyn Holder, DDS Candidate 2019, was a recipient of a 2017 AADR Student Research Fellowship. She was one of 18 students presented with such a fellowship. The fellowship award is for proposed research under the guidance of Dr. Ching-Chang Ko, G. Fred Hale Distinguished Professor in the Department of Orthodontics. These fellowships are sponsored and administered by the AADR and have been created to encourage dental students living in the United States to consider careers in oral health research. Her award was sponsored by Johnson & Johnson.
