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SDM professor appointed to FDA panel on product safety
By Tim Stoddard
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Salomon Amar, an SDM professor of oral biology and periodontology. Photo by Kalman Zabarsky |
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It’s nearly impossible these days to buy toothpaste that isn’t enhanced with tooth whiteners, tartar controllers, and other fancy ingredients promising brighter smiles and healthier gums. Americans who brush regularly don’t have to worry about such additives, putting their faith in the Food and Drug Administration’s dental products panel, which reviews and evaluates the safety and effectiveness of over-the-counter items like whiteners, oral rinses, and toothpastes. Salomon Amar, an SDM professor of oral biology and periodontology, was recently appointed to the FDA panel.
“We are charged with very serious and challenging tasks,” he says, “and I am grateful for the opportunity to share my expertise and opinions with such highly regarded dental professionals, scientists, and researchers.”
Spencer Frankl, an SDM professor and dean of the School of Dental Medicine, says that he and his colleagues “are pleased and proud that a member of our community has been selected for such a prestigious and important role with the FDA. Salomon is a world-renowned scientist and clinician who will be an outstanding addition to the panel.”
Along with reviewing the safety of commonly used products, the panel advises on possible health risks associated with implants and devices, and advises the FDA commissioner on issues relating to the design of clinical studies. From time to time, the panel also evaluates whether a prescription drug should have its status changed to over-the-counter.
Amar is best known for shedding light on the molecular processes involved in inflammatory diseases ranging from septic shock to rheumatoid arthritis. In 1999 he discovered the gene that controls the production of the protein tumor necrosis factor (TNF) alpha, a molecule the body produces when it needs to destroy unwanted tissue. Researchers have implicated TNF-alpha in a variety of inflammatory diseases where the body attacks itself. With his SDM colleagues, Amar is now trying to control gene expression in inflammatory processes such as gingivitis, periodontitis, Crohn’s disease, and rheumatoid arthritis, with the aim of reducing long-term hard and soft tissue destruction. “The TNF-alpha discovery has opened the door to a number of new therapeutic approaches for treating inflammatory diseases, not only in dentistry, but in the medical field,” he says. “I think the FDA wanted someone with a dental background, but also with a broader perspective of various inflammatory conditions.”
23
April 2004
Boston University
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