Second time’s a charm
Dr. Ye Tian
Dr. Ye “Tina” Tian, a visiting scholar in the lab of Dr. Xiaofang Wang, assistant professor in biomedical sciences, won first place in the Craniofacial Biology Group and Bernard Sarnat Award competitions during the International Association for Dental Research meeting in Seoul, South Korea, from June 22-25.
Tian’s presentation, “Inactivation of FAM20B in the Dental Epithelium of Mice Leads to Supernumerary Incisors,” explores what happens when FAM20B, a gene necessary for cartilage development, is removed from mouse models. Not only do teeth reach higher states of mineralization; additional teeth grow when this protein is inactivated.
Tian’s work marks the second time in several months that research findings on this topic have received recognition. In fall 2015, Derrick Crawford, then a second-year dental student who worked in Wang’s lab as part of the school’s summer research program, won the American Association for Dental Research Student Research Award from the dental school, making it possible for him to travel to the AADR annual meeting this spring to present related findings.
