Dental Medicine

Applying physics expertise to making smiles brighter

With a background in physics and material science, Yu Zhang has joined the School of Dental Medicine to advance the way dentists restore oral health.

Katherine Unger Baillie ・January 13, 2021

A gloved hands holds two small pieces of ceramic dental technology.

Embracing digital dentistry

The School of Dental Medicine is enhancing and integrating its digital capabilities, opening up new possibilities for training students, conducting research, and delivering seamless and cutting-edge patient care.

Katherine Unger Baillie ・November 24, 2020

scientific diagram shows how immune training of neutrophils in the bone marrow can produce ROS, or reactive oxygen species, to produce an anti-cancer response by the immune system

Priming the immune system to attack cancer

An international team, co-led by the School of Dental Medicine’s George Hajishengallis, showed how immune “training” transforms certain immune cells to target tumors.

Katherine Unger Baillie ・October 29, 2020

Scientific diagram shows how protein called DEL-1 leads to a T cell expressing FOXP3

New insights into autoimmune disease

According to research by the School of Dental Medicine’s George Hajishengallis and colleagues, novel insights into a pathway that restrains the immune response opens up new avenues for treating inflammatory and autoimmune conditions.

Katherine Unger Baillie ・October 26, 2020

Taking on HIV and oral health

Embarking on a new study of people living with HIV, the School of Dental Medicine’s Temitope Omolehinwa hopes to build data on an understudied issue.

Katherine Unger Baillie ・October 21, 2020

Screen capture of a panel of people with the banner across the screen reading “The Penn Experience: Racism, Reconciliation, & Engagement”

Penn Dental and SP2 partner to address racism, reconciliation, and engagement

A new, online course for incoming SP2 students entitled “The Penn Experience: Racism, Reconciliation and Engagement” was created in collaboration with Penn’s School of Dental Medicine and launched in July.

From the School of Social Policy & Practice ・October 6, 2020

Image of a body's cell representing with the words "mimicking efferocytosis-induced signals" showing the treatment of an inflammatory disease

Stimulating immune cleanup crew offers affordable possibility for treating rare genetic disorder

Compounds that mimicked the process known as efferocytosis alleviated signs of leukocyte adhesion deficiency type-1 in an animal model, according to work led by the School of Dental Medicine’s George Hajishengallis

Katherine Unger Baillie ・May 26, 2020

Parent brushes their toddler’s teeth seen in a bathroom mirror

Oral care during COVID-19

Experts from the School of Dental Medicine share tips on how to maintain healthy teeth and gums even when a trip to the dentist isn’t in the cards for the time being and what to expect as restrictions are lifted.

Katherine Unger Baillie ・May 20, 2020

Microscopic image of a bacterial growth labeled with green, red, and blue fluorescence

Cavity-causing bacteria assemble an army of protective microbes on human teeth

Examining bacteria growing on toddlers’ teeth, a team from the School of Dental Medicine and Georgia Tech found that the microbes’ spatial organization is crucial to how they cause tooth decay.

Katherine Unger Baillie ・May 18, 2020

dental medicine with technicians handing off plastic bag

Ten years later, dental mentorship program holds strong

Penn Dental Medicine students and faculty connect with Randolph high schoolers through the School District of Philadelphia’s Oral Health Academy.

Lauren Hertzler ・April 23, 2020

In the News

The Guardian

Does your jaw click? Do you grind your teeth? It could be this little-known condition

Thomas P. Sollecito of the School of Dental Medicine says that roughly 10-15% of adults have some form of temporomandibular disorder, though the vast majority don’t require treatment.

FULL STORY →

The Wall Street Journal