 Dr. Deborah Dawson, director of Biostatistics and Research Design, has been awarded the Teaching of Statistics in the Health Sciences 2016 Joint Statistical Meeting Best Presentation Award.
Nov 08, 2016 Dr. Deborah Dawson, director of Biostatistics and Research Design, has been awarded the Teaching of Statistics in the Health Sciences (TSHS) 2016 Joint Statistical Meeting (JSM) Best Presentation Award. Dr. Dawson received the award based on the JSM's session feedback ratings for her presentation, "Didactic Exercises for Teaching Meta-Analysis to Students in the Health Sciences," which she gave during the recent American Statistical Association's (ASM) meeting.
More than 6,000 people from 52 countries attended the ASM meeting, which was held in Chicago, Illinois.
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 Dr. Liu Hong, Dental Research and Department of Prosthodontics, has received a two-year, $409,697 NIH grant for his research project, "A MicroRNA-based Approach for Bone Regeneration."
Sep 13, 2016 Dr. Liu Hong, Dental Research, and Department of Prosthodontics, has received a two-year, $409,697 NIH grant for his research project, "A MicroRNA-based Approach for Bone Regeneration."
This project will demonstrate the function mediated by a member of the microRNA-200 family to enhance osteogenic differentiation of human bone marrow mesenchymal stem cells and bone formation. it will also establish a proof of concept in which this specific microRNA delivered by a non-viral vector can be used to develop a novel therapeutics for bone regeneration.
Dr. Hong is principal investigator for the research project. Drs. Aliasger Salem, Colleges of Pharmacy and Dentistry (joint appointed) and Brad A. Amendt, associate dean for research, are co-investigators.
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 Dr. Susan McKernan, Department of Preventive & Community Dentistry, has been awarded a one-year, $174,999 Special Interests Projects grant from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC).
Sep 07, 2016 Dr. Susan McKernan, Department of Preventive & Community Dentistry, has been awarded a one-year, $174,999 Special Interests Projects grant from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) for studies that will address oral health and cancer. Dr. McKernan will explore the integration of oral health and primary care. The CDC funding is channeled through the Prevention Research Center based in the College of Public Health. The researchers will conduct an environmental scan of what is currently occurring within state and local governmental and non-profit public health entities surrounding oral health and chronic disease prevention. They will also collect information about how oral health is being included in state and national efforts to reform the U.S. health care system. Examples of medical-dental integration will be identified and best practice approaches will be recommended. Results of the proposed activities will allow policymakers to maximize existing public health resources by addressing common risk factors for non-communicable diseases and oral disease based on evidence-based best practices. Recent national efforts to reform health care delivery provide an ideal opportunity for policymakers to advocate for the inclusion of oral health in these changes.
Dr. McKernan will be principal investigator. Drs. Raymond Kuthy, Department of Preventive & Community Dentistry, is a co-principal investigator. Dr. Julie Reynolds, Department of Preventive & Community Dentistry, is a co-investigator.
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 Dr. Arwa Owais, Department of Pediatric Dentistry, has been elected as North American Regional Councilor for the International Association for Dental Research (IADR) Pediatric Oral Health Research Group.
Sep 07, 2016 Dr. Arwa Owais, Department of Pediatric Dentistry, has been elected as a North American Regional Councilor for the International Association for Dental Research (IADR) Pediatric Oral Health Research Group. This is a very highly prestigious, competitive and sought-after position. She begins her term immediately.
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 Dr. Isabelle Denry, Iowa Institute for Oral Health Research, and Department of Prosthodontics received a two-year, $419,375 NIH grant.
Jul 18, 2016 Dr. Isabelle Denry, Iowa Institute for Oral Health Research, and Department of Prosthodontics received a two-year, $419,375 grant from the National Institutes of Health (NIH) for her research project, "Smart Release Antimicrobial Coatings for Dental Implants."
Dr. Denry is principal investigator. Drs. Amanda Haes, UI Chemistry Department; Jeffrey Banas, Iowa Institute for Oral Health Research, and Department of Pediatric Dentistry; and Julie Holloway, chair, Department of Prosthodontics, are co-investigators.
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 Dr. Astha Singhal receives the Aubrey Sheiham Award for Distinguished Award for Distinguished Research in Dental Public Health Services.
Jul 18, 2016 Dr. Astha Singhal received the Aubrey Sheiham Award for Distinguished Research in Dental Public Health Services. The award was announced during the International Association for Dental Research, Behavioral, Epidemiologic and Health Services Scientific Group meeting in Seoul, Republic of Korea. (Dr. Singhal was unable to attend the meeting.)
Dr. Singhal's award was for her article, "Eliminating Dental Emergency Visits and Associated Costs," which was published in the May 2015 issue of Health Affair. Co-authors included Dr. Dan Caplan, Chair, Preventive and Community Dentistry; Dr. Michael Jones, College of Public Health; Dr. Ray Kuthy, Department of Preventive & Community Dentistry; Dr. Christopher Buresh, College of Medicine; Dr. Robert Isman, Medi-Cal Dental Services, Division of the California Department of Health Care Services; and Dr. Peter Damiano, Department of Preventive & Community Dentistry.
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 Dr. Gustavo Avila-Ortiz, Department of Periodontics, has received a two-year, $107,586 Sunstar Americas grant.
Jul 12, 2016 Dr. Gustavo Avila-Ortiz, Department of Periodontics, has been awarded a two-year, $107,586 grant from Sunstar Americas, Inc., for his research, "Prospective, Comparative Assessment of Alveolar Ridge Preservation Using Guidor Easy-Graft Class in Atraumatic Extraction Socket."
The primary objective of the study is to investigate linear and volumetric osseous changes at four months following ridge preservation by calculating horizontal and vertical bone changes via cone beam computed tomography (CBCT). The secondary objectives of the study are to evaluate new bone replacement/remaining graft residuals at re-entry (histomorphometric assessment), change in mesial and distal marginal bone loss on periapical radiographs from baseline to re-entry, and change in mesial and distal marginal bone loss on periapical radiographs from crown delivery up to six months and to twelve months after the crown delivery (follow-up observation).
Dr. Avila-Ortiz is the principal investigator. Dr. Kelsey Tengan, graduate fellow, Department of Periodontics, is co-investigator.
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 Dr. Azeez Butali has received a three-year, $597,645 Roy J. Carver Charitable Trust grant to develop a biorepository for research into oral health and disease.
Jun 20, 2016 Dr. Azeez Butali, Dental Research and Department of Oral Pathology, Radiology and Medicine, has received a three-year, $597,645 Roy C. Carver Charitable Trust grant to develop a biorepository for research into oral health and disease. The award will support the collection of 12,500 biological samples that include saliva, teeth, oral tissues, and dental and medical information from 10,000 individuals. The purpose of the biorepository is threefold:
1. To establish a biorepository that will combine biological materials, dental and medical records;
2. To establish a fully integrated medical, genetic and dental patient record to improve quality of care provided to the patients, as well as enhance broader quality research across the University of Iowa medical and dental facilities;
3. To make these data and biological materials available to researchers at the University of Iowa and collaborators in order to conduct ground-breaking research, to deliver personalized precision medicine and improve patients' health.
Dr. Butali is principal investigator. Drs. Arwa Owais, Department of Pediatric Dentistry, and Veersathpurush Allareddy, Department of Orthodontics are co-principal investigators.
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Dr. Isabelle Denry, Dental Research and Department of Prosthodontics, has received a two-year, $418,907 NIH grant.
Apr 15, 2016 Dr. Isabelle Denry, Dental Research and Department of Prosthodontics, has received a two-year, $418,907 NIH grant for her research project, "Synergistic Phase Combination for High Strength Ultrafine-Grained Bioceramics." Dr. Julie Holloway, chair of the Department of Prosthodontics, is a co-investigator.
With the aging population and longer life expectancy, the total number of hip and knee arthroplasty revision procedures is expected to exceed 67,000 and 120,000 per year by 2020, with an estimated health care cost of $2.2 billion per year. Ceramic surfaces are attractive for both orthopedic and dental applications because of low wear rates but they are brittle and susceptible to catastrophic failure.
Drs. Denry and Holloway propose to develop a novel zirconia/nanospinel bioceramic realizing a synergistic phase combination for high reliability and strength and low abrasiveness, while longer life performance will reduce costs associated with revision surgeries and replacement of single or large-span dental restorations.
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 Brad A. Amendt, associate dean for research at the College of Dentistry, has been named Dentistry Centennial Professor of Research.
Feb 19, 2016 Brad A. Amendt, associate dean for research at the College of Dentistry, has been named Dentistry Centennial Professor of Research. He was conferred the five-year appointment during the 63rd Annual Meeting of the Iowa Section of the American Association for Dental Research (AADR), which was held February 16.
Dr. Amendt's research focuses on understanding the role of transcription factors and signaling pathways in tooth and craniofacial development. His lab studies the expression and regulation of transcription factor genes and signaling processes involved in craniofacial/tooth development; the molecular basis of selected human genetic disorders; and the role of stem cells and microRNAs in regulating craniofacial and regenerative medicine.
Dr. Amendt is know internationally as one of the world's leading authorities on micro-RNA research and cell plasticity.
Dr. Clark Stanford, former associate dean for research, was the first to be named Dentistry Centennial Professor of Clinical Research. He held the professorship from 2001-2014 before accepting the deanship of the University of Illinois, Chicago (UIC) College of Dentistry.
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 Dr. Azeez Butali, Iowa Institute for Oral Health Research, and Department of Oral Pathology, Radiology and Medicine, has received a one-year, $249,000 National Institutes of Health (NIH) grant.
Feb 12, 2016 Dr. Azeez Butali, Iowa Institute for Oral Health Research, and Department of Oral Pathology, Radiology, and Medicine, has received a one-year, $249,000 National Institutes of Health (NIH) grant for his research, "Genetic Studies of Nonsyndromic Clefts in Populations of African Descent." The focus of his study is to understand the complex genetic etiology of orofacial clefts (OFC) by determining the genetic variations that contribute to OFC in homogenous African populations and relate these findings to prevention and clinical management of the disease. Specifically, this study will focus on genome-wide association studies (common variant association studies and rare variant association studies (RVAS) of non-syndromic clefts using homogenous samples from Africa). Dr. Butali is the principal investigator.
In addition to this award, he also received an X01 NIH grant. Through the X01 award, the Center for Inherited Disease Research (CIDR) at Johns Hopkins University, Baltimore, MD, genotyped 2.2. million single nucleotide polymorphisms (SNPs) on approximately 3,500 samples from Africa. The cost of this genotyping was paid by NIH directly to the CIDR.
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