Research Day 2025
02/13/2025

An annual celebration of the cutting-edge research at the School of Dentistry including a keynote, poster presentations, and awards

2025 Schedule

1

10:30am - 12:00pm

Poster and Exhibitor Session 1


Morning Session Poster List
Location: Michigan League 2nd Floor
2

1:00pm - 2:30pm

Keynote Presentation, Russell Taichman, DMD, DMSc

Professor and Chair of the Department of Basic & Clinical Translational Science at Tufts University School of Dental Medicine.

Location: School of Dentistry - Kellogg Auditorium
3

2:30pm - 4:00pm

Poster and Exhibitor Session 2

Afternoon Session Poster List
Location: Michigan League 2nd Floor

2025 Keynote Speaker

Rena D'Souza

Russell S. Taichman, D.M.D., D.M.Sc.

Professor and Chair of the Department of Basic & Clinical Translational Science at Tufts University School of Dental Medicine. Dr. Taichman also serves as the Associate Dean for Research at the Tufts University School of Dental Medicine. Prior to Tufts University he served as Associate Dean for Research at the University of Michigan School of Dentistry.
Title: The Power of Questions: Turning Challenges into Breakthroughs in the Quest for Discovery

Research Day Nominated Awards
Awardees in the following categories will be announced directly after the keynote talk. 

Poster Competition/Exhibitor Session

Awards and Eligibility for 2023 Research Day Competition

Category & Eligibility Category 1
Clinical, Public Health, Behavioral and Education Research
Category 2
Basic Science Research and Translational Science
Degree Seeking students: DDS, Hygiene, Masters and Undergrad students 1st - 3rd Place Awards 1st - 3rd Place Awards
PhD Students (DDS/PhD), Postdoctoral Trainees and Staff 1st - 3rd Place Awards 1st - 3rd Place Awards
SCADA/Dentsply Award
Eligibility - D1, D2 or D3 or DDS/PhD only
1st Place - Goes to top ranked score of current DDS or DDS/PhD eligible student
Award: Expenses paid for presenting at AADR (membership, registration, hotel, flight)
AADR Student Travel Award: Enrolled student who has an approved abstract to present at AADR ADOCR Student Travel Award
Dental Hygiene Awards 1st and 2nd place Award

2025 AWARDS
Category: Clinical, Public Health, Behavioral and Education Research 
Eligibility: DDS, Hygiene, Masters and Undergrad Students

Name

                    Place

                Level

                Poster Title

Ray J Lawrence Jackson

            1st

                 D4

Members of the LGBTQ+ Community and Oral Healthcare Utilization

Nabighah Sofia Azim

            2nd

                 D2 

Dentists’ Experiences, Attitudes and Professional Behavior Related to Pronoun Use in Dental Settings: A National Survey

Afriti Chinoy

           3rd

                  D4

Outcomes of Advanced Arthroscopy On Patients Who Previously Failed TMJ Arthrocentesis/Arthroscopic Lysis and Lavage

Category: Clinical, Public Health, Behavioral and Education Research 
Eligibility: PhD, DDS/PhD, Postdocs and Staff

Name

             Place

            Level

                Poster Title

Bruno Ribeiro Braga

               1st

Visiting Scholar

Alveolar Bone Grafting with Mandibular Symphysis Bone: A Preliminary 3D Study

Hend Abulatifa

              2nd

Postdoc

The Impact of Skin Cancer on Prevalence and Progression of Periodontitis After Therapy - An Age, Gender, Smoking and Diabetes Case-Controlled Study

Ana Beatriz Teodoro

              3rd

Visiting Scholar

Optimizing Automatic Segmentation of Primary and Permanent Teeth in Cone-Beam Computed Tomography

Category: Basic Science Research and Translational Research 
Eligibility: DDS, Hygiene, Masters and Undergrad Students

Name

        Place

   Level

                Poster Title

Kelsey Lea Gruber

1st place and SCADA Winner

  D3

Inhibition of Alkaline Phosphatase Alters Orthodontic Tooth Movement

Shaun Garg

2nd

Undergrad

Understanding the Neural Pathways Involved in Masticatory Muscle Control

Sarah Seohyun Chang

3rd place and AADOCR Travel Award Winner

Undergrad

Modulation of Antimicrobial and Anti-Inflammatory Response Through Core-Shell Fibers Loaded with Metronidazole and Dexamethasone for Periodontal Therapy

Category: Basic Science and Translational Science
Eligibility: PhD, DDS/PhD, Postdocs and Staff

Name

  Place

          Level

                Poster Title

Juliana Amorim dos Santos

    1st

Postdoc

Novel Traces of Trigeminal Somatosensory Innervation in the Salivary Glands

Ritwika Bera

    2nd

PhD Student

Exploring the Impact of TRIP13 Phosphorylation at Y56 on Cell Cycle Progression

Sahar Aminmansour

     3rd

Staff Meneber

In Vitro Evaluation of Yerba Mate Incorporated Polymer Scaffolds on Inflammation and Mineralization for Endo-Perio Lesion Management

Dental Hygiene Awards

*all awardees are DH4 students

Name

Level

Poster Title

Vy Tran, Niebal Sukar and Manaal Zubair

  1st

The Role of Prediabetes Risk Surveys and Chairside Glucose Testing in Michigan Dental Practices

Fareeha Ahmad, Nabeeha Ahmad and Heba Zeibo

  2 st

Exploring Young Adults' Awareness of Oral Health Risks Associated with Electronic Nicotine Delivery Systems Use

Bruckner Prewitt and Alejandra Guevara

  3 st

Preparedness of Michigan Dental Hygienists in Treating D(d)eaf and Hard of Hearing Individuals

Other Awards 

Award

Name

2025 Jan Berry Award Winner

Marcell Costa de Medeiros

2025 Distinguished Faculty Mentoring Award

Joshua Emrick

2025 Research Staff Award

Jennifer Linzmeier

Judging Criteria for Poster Competition

 
 

SUBJECT MATTER

%

ORAL PRESENTATION

%

PROFESSIONALISM

%

SUBJECT MATTER

  • Is data being presented scientifically sound and statistically significant?
  • Does the research present a creative, innovative approach to the
  • question(s) being asked by the research?
  • Is the research timely and important?
  • Was the presenter able to respond to the judges’ questions regarding
  • their presentation effectively?
  • Are the limitations and assumptions underpinning the work presented discussed?
  • Are future directions of the research being presented discussed? 
  • Does the presenter know why the research being presented is important?

ORAL PRESENTATION

  • Was the hypothesis clearly stated?
  • Was sufficient background knowledge provided?
  • Were the methods used in the research clearly outlined?
  • Did the presenter demonstrate an understanding of their data?
  • Were results presented succinctly?
  • Were the summary and conclusions clear and concise?

PRO-PROFESSIONALISM

  • Was the poster well-organized?
  • Did the presenter have a professional demeanor and appearance? 
  • Was the student present when the poster was being judged? 
  • If presenter is not available, this portion will receive a zero score