Alexandria, Va. – The 2008 Research in Oral Biology Award will be presented to Dr. Noel Childers, the Joseph Volker Professor and Chair, Department of Pediatric Dentistry, University of Alabama at Birmingham School of Dentistry. The award is being presented by the International Association for Dental Research (IADR) at its 86th General Session & Exhibition in Toronto, ON, Canada on July 2, 2008.
Dr. Childers' research has contributed to the understanding of the potential for mucosal immune responses to influence infection and disease in the oral cavity. Throughout his career, he has taken discoveries in antigen delivery and applied them to research in humans, especially in the area of dental caries vaccine development. Dr. Childers has also maintained a continuing research program assessing the prevalence of dental disease in children, with special emphasis on the correlation of mutans streptococcal infections with the eruption of primary and secondary teeth.
With more than 50 publications, Dr. Childers currently supervises a large project in Liposomal Recombinant Vaccine and Caries Immunity, and another project exploring Epidemiology of Dental Caries and Immunity in Children, funded by the National Institute of Dental and Craniofacial Research (NIDCR), to investigate host/parasite relationships in the pathogenesis and epidemiology of dental caries in high-caries-risk populations.
Sponsored by Church & Dwight Company, the Research in Oral Biology Award is one of the 16 IADR Distinguished Scientist Awards and is one of the highest honors bestowed by the IADR. The award consists of a cash prize and plaque and recognizes outstanding research in the field of oral biology.
About the International Association for Dental Research
The International Association for Dental Research (IADR) is a non-profit organization with more than 10,500 individual members worldwide, dedicated to: (1) advancing research and increasing knowledge to improve oral health, (2) supporting the oral health research community, and (3) facilitating the communication and application of research findings for the improvement of oral health worldwide.
To learn more about the IADR, visit www.iadr.org.