Research

Kim Mansky, PhD, and Amy Tasca, DDS, PhD, are no strangers to working together. In fact, the director of the Minnesota Craniofacial Research Training Program served as the primary advisor to Tasca, holder of the Robert J Isaacson Chair of Orthodontics, during Tasca’s graduate studies. They haven’t stopped working together since.

Mohammed Akl, DDS, MS ’22, received the 2022 University of Minnesota President’s Student Leadership and Service Award.

Everyday tasks that were once simple can sometimes become complicated and stressful for transgender people. Oral health care shouldn’t be one of them—and researchers across the School of Dentistry are doing their part to make sure that’s the case.

Three School of Dentistry students showcased their expertise and flexed their research and presentation skills this March when they presented posters at the American Dental Education Association’s annual meeting.

A School of Dentistry research hub is set to take part in an innovative, collaborative center that will transform the way we formulate and manufacture pharmaceutical drugs.

When it came time to decide on a post-graduate path, Parandis Kazemi didn’t want to have to choose between her two passions. The School of Dentistry allowed her to keep her options open, pursuing both research and practice, thanks to a dual degree program.

Sofia SooYoung Park, DDS ’25, won first place in the Student Competition for Advancing Dental Research Application (SCADA) Basic and Translational Science Research category at the American Association for Dental, Oral and Craniofacial Research’s 2022 Annual Meeting

Questions are what drive scientific discovery. Big questions—the ones that keep us up at night—foster a desire for learning that never stops. They dare us to dream, to think differently. And they are how we transform our patient care. The School of Dentistry holds as a guiding principle a commitment to lifelong discovery through research that innovates the practice and study of dentistry. A core part of that commitment is the Oral Health Clinical Research Center (OHCRC).

The 18th annual Research Day at the University of Minnesota School of Dentistry, held Friday, March 4, brought together experts across disciplines from the University of Minnesota and beyond to discuss cutting-edge discoveries in oral biology, cancer treatment and prevention and more. 

The Student Summer Research Fellow Program at the University of Minnesota provides funding for incoming DDS students and students completing their first year of the program, who wish to spend the summer. Over a 10-week period, each student undertakes a structured research program. Fellows attend weekly training seminars, with an opportunity the following spring to prepare a written report and a poster for presentation at local and regional student research meetings. In the past, some of these students have attended national meetings such as the American Association for Dental Research.