The Graduate Faculty in Oral Biology offers multidisciplinary training in the biology of oral tissues under the direction of a faculty with diverse backgrounds and research interests. Faculty members and their research interests are summarized below. The intent of the program is to train scientists who will be equipped to enter research and teaching careers. This is acheived through courses in basic oral biology and specialized areas such as salivary glands and secretions, mineralized and other connective tissues, oral microbiology, molecular mechanisms of cellular and microbial adhesion, genetics of oral tissues, physical biology of the oral cavity, the secretory immune system and biology of the chemical senses.
Additional coursework is required in basic biological sciences.
Research facilities are excellent, with well equipped laboratories in a modern building. The program is housed in the School of Dentistry, which is part of a major health sciences complex. There is an extensive tissue culture facility and laboratories for salivary chemistry, cell biology and immunology, mineralized tissue studies, microbiology, neuroscience, biomaterials, and biophysics of oral function. Excellent animal facilities are available. A large patient population is available for a variety of clinical studies.