Advanced Education

Skeletal, Craniofacial and Oral Biology Ph.D. Program

The Skeletal, Craniofacial and Oral Biology Graduate Program is an interdisciplinary and interdepartmental program. The administrative base of the Program is located in the Center for Regenerative Medicine and Skeletal Development of the School of Dental Medicine. Graduate program faculty members are members of the Center for Regenerative Medicine and Skeletal Development and other departments within the Schools of Dental Medicine and Medicine. The aim of the Skeletal, Craniofacial and Oral Biology Graduate Program is to train educators and research scientists capable of independent biological research.

Program Description

Skeletal, Craniofacial and Oral Biology is the study of basic biological mechanisms related to the oral cavity in health and disease. It has evolved as a discipline due to the unique qualities of specialized tissues of the head and neck.

Research in Skeletal, Craniofacial and Oral Biology is multidisciplinary incorporating contemporary research methods and techniques.

Among the topics currently investigated by the faculty of the graduate program are:

• Control of differentiation and development of the skeleton and craniofacial structures
• Cancer
• Neurophysiology of taste and smell
• Organization of structures in the central nervous system related to the mouth and face
• Mechanisms of bone resorption
• Collagen biosynthesis and gene expression
• Biochemistry and cell biology of the extracellular matrix and human genetics

These lines of investigation employ the methods of embryology, molecular and cell biology, anatomy, electrophysiology, chemistry, genetics, microbiology, and immunology.

Graduates of the program are awarded a Ph.D. in Biomedical Sciences from the Graduate School. It is also possible to combine Ph.D. training with a certificate in one of the advanced dental education programs or with a D.M.D.