Mentor Areas
My laboratory has been involved in many aspects of periodontics and wound healing particularly the impact of inflammation and diabetes on both. This work established that diabetes causes enhanced and prolonged inflammation that had two particularly destructive effects. More recently, these studies have examined how dendritic cells regulate the immune response when challenged with oral infection. Other studies examine diabetes and wound healing focusing on the transcription factor FOXO1, which plays an important role in the healing process. Surprisingly this factor is needed for normal healing to occur but has the opposite effect in diabetic wounds, interfering with the healing process. Current studies investigate mechanisms involved.
Description:
Our recent interests focus on two complications of diabetes, impaired wound healing and enhanced periodontal disease. Interestingly, the same factors that contribute to impaired wound healing also contribute to increased periodontal disease. One project involves an examination of the wound healing response and the other project involves an assessment bacteria induced periodontal bone loss. Both of these projects use genetic deletion to shift the host response, which can rescue the negative effect of diabetes on both complications. A number of parameters will be examined in both projects to quantify the impact of gene deletion and diabetes on critical molecular events that control cytokine production, inflammation, the response of lymphocytes and macrophages and tissue formation. The techniques used include histomorphometry, computer assisted image analysis, flow cytometry, single cell RNAseq, bioinformatics, western blot analysis, immunofluorescence, PCR, chromatin immunoprecipitation assays, etc.
Preferred Qualifications
No specific skills required.
Details:
Preferred Student Year
First-year, Second-Year, Junior, Senior
Academic Term
Fall, Spring, Summer
I prefer to have students start during the above term(s).Volunteer
Yes
Yes indicates that faculty are open to volunteers.Paid
No
Yes indicates that faculty are open to paying students they engage in their research, regardless of their work-study eligibility.Work Study
No
Yes indicates that faculty are open to hiring work-study-eligible students.