Students present research from APEX rotations

On Tuesday, August 13, 2019, 10 students from the Henry M. Goldman School of Dental Medicine (GSDM) Doctor of Dental Medicine (DMD) Class of 2022 presented on the research they undertook during their Applied Professional Experience (APEX) program.

“Research is an important aspect of your education here at GSDM,” Dean Jeffrey W. Hutter said. “I congratulate each of you for all of your hard work during your eight weeks of research rotation.”

DMD students take part in APEX, an eight-week internship in a private dental office or public health clinic, at the end of their first year. The program is designed to provide students with the opportunity to practice what they have learned in the classroom during their first year and to lay the foundation for more advanced clinical topics they will learn in the following year. Students have the opportunity to engage in research during Apex during which they dedicate two or three days each week for their research training and experience.

Below are some highlights from the presentations:

  • Maria Roxas presented “Exploring the Role of CO2 Lasers in Improving Enamel Hardness.” (Maria Roxas, Jayapriyaa Shanmugham, Athanasios Zavras) She and postdoctoral students in the biomaterials lab used a sample size of 40 teeth to determine the efficacy of CO2 laser application by evaluating enamel hardness with and without fluoride application and varying strengths of CO2 aided in preventing dental caries among children.
  • Amy (Jeong Yun) Ahn presented “RNA Sequencing of Premalignant Oral Cancer Cells” (Amy (Jeong Yun) Ahn, Bach-Cuc Nguyen, Huamei Yang, Maria Kukuruzinska) Ahn examined the role of Nuclear β-catenin in head and neck cancer.
  • Briana Chang DMD 22 presented “Role of State Medicaid Policies in Improving Access to Dental Care among Low Income Adults.” (Briana Chang, Cassandra Yarbrough, Astha Singhal) Using data from the Kaiser Family Foundation, Medicaid.gov, the American Dental Association, and state websites, Chang examined what dental procedures the Affordable Care Act (ACA) covered, and how availability and cost of services varied across states.
  • Chloe Habib, Anoush Longerstaey, and Darian Shomali, all DMD 22, presented on “Sources of Error in CBCT Measurement” (Chloe Habib, Anoush Longerstaey, Darian Shomali, Serge Dibart, Albert Price). By examining 66 CBCT scans of the #4 and #13 teeth, Habib et al. found that a clinician’s ability to accurately measure the buccal lingual dimension of the buccal plate dimensions can introduce error into the digital workflow of surgical guide fabrication.
  • Grace Kapov presented “Incidence of Root Canal Treatment and Lesions of Endodontic Origin in Diabetics from the VA Dental Longitudinal Study.” (Grace Kapov, Elizabeth Kaye) By examining data from the VA Dental Longitudinal Study, Kapov found that participants in the study with diabetes were 1.57 times more likely to have a tooth treated with root canal than participants without diabetes.
  • Josias Madera presented “Utilization of Deep Learning for the Detection of Angle’s Classification in Intraoral Images.” (Josias Madera, Melih Motro) Madera obtained and annotated 1180 images from databases with angle’s classification and the location of permanent canines and first molars so that software engineers could in the future use artificial intelligence (AI) technologies to create a database so that the accuracy of a proper diagnosis and the right treatment can be performed.
  • Manavi Nagai presented two projects she worked on during her time at the National Institute for Health. With “Using Tissue Nonspecific Alkaline Phosphatase for Treatment of Periodontitis in Mice” (Manavi Nagai, Gabrielle Law, Susan Schmidt, Martha Somerman, Atsuhiro Nagasaki, Nadine Samara, Lawrence Tabak, Developmental Glycobiology Section at NIDCR, NIH), Nagai sought to answer the question: Can ALP be used to treat alveolar bone loss caused by periodontal disease? In parallel, Nagai worked on another project where she looked at the role of mycobacterium L, D-transpeptidases in cell wall peptidoglycan synthesis. This project was in collaboration with Dr. Leighanne Basta at the U.S. Naval Academy.
  • Jasmine Pasco presented “Effects of Sleep on Surgical Workload in OMFS Residents.” (Jasmine Pasco, Jeremy Warn, Andrew Salama) Pasco helped to plan an upcoming study that will attempt to determine whether sleep deprivation has an impact on surgical workload, specifically in OMFS residents.

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