“Trained as a dentist in Greece, George Hajishengallis, one of the newest faculty members at the University of Pennsylvania School of Dental Medicine, was happy enough with the idea of practicing dentistry there. But something was missing. “As important as clinical treatment is — and I think it’s more important than research,” said Hajishengallis, “it can become routine.” Realizing he would miss […]

“In a paper published on March 25 in Nature Immunology [doi:10.1038/ni.2260], a team of researchers reports on a potentially high-value new target in the fight against periodontal disease. The new lead is a glycoprotein called Del-1 that has the unique ability in animal studies to negatively regulate, or turn down, the inflammatory immune response, the body’s first line of defense. […]

“Scientists are discovering that a small protein named developmental endothelial locus 1 (Del-1) can arrest the processes that lead to runaway oral inflammation and periodontitis, particularly in older individuals. In a study published March 25 in Nature Immunology, George Hajishengallis, DDS, PhD, and his team — in collaboration with a group led by Triantafyllos Chavakis, MD, PhD — showed that administration […]

“The mouth provides a hospitable environment for many microorganisms. It is warm, nutrient-rich, continuously bathed with saliva, and has a pH of between 6.75 and 7.25. Hence the oral cavity is home to a rich microbiota, most of which are beneficial organisms and live in harmony with each other and the host. The presence of microbes is in fact essential […]

“A recent Cell Host & Microbe paper reveals that Porphyromonas gingivalis, the key bacterial trigger for periodon- titis, disrupts the homeostasis between the host and the commensal oral microbiota, thereby tipping the balance towards inflammatory disease. Periodontitis is characterized by inflammatory periodontal bone loss and is the most common cause of tooth loss worldwide. P. gingivalis was known to have […]

“George Hajishengallis, D.D.S., Ph.D. is currently a professor & distinguished university scholar at the University of Louisville School of Dentistry. In addition, he is a principal investigator at the Oral Health and Systemic Disease Group at the university and has a joint appointment with the university’s Department of Microbiology and Immunology, School of Medicine. Hajishengallis obtained a D.D.S. in 1989 […]

“Up until recently it has been a bit of a mystery as to how bacterium Porphyromonas gingivalis were able to wreck such havoc in the mouth, and how exactly they were able to trigger periodontitis, despite being present in relatively low numbers in the sub gingival crevice. Now researchers have discovered that P. gingivalis is able to reprogram the immune […]

“Researchers at the University of Louisville want to know whether AMD3100, a drug developed to combat HIV can help also control periodontal disease, a chronic inflammatory disease of the gums. To help answer this question, the National Institutes of Health (NIH) has awarded $1.7 million to UofL School of Dentistry researcher George Hajishengallis and his team. Hajishengallis will use the […]

“Researchers from the University of Louisville School of Dentistry, were recently awarded a $1.7 million grant from the National Institutes of Health to study whether an anti-HIV drug could also be used to control periodontal diseases. The study of the drug, AMD3100, led by Professor George Hajishengallis from the school’s Centre for Oral Systemic Disease, will investigate the interactions between […]

“Researchers at University of Louisville School of Dentistry have learned that a common bacteria of the mouth, P. gingivalis, may be circumventing the body’s immune system by “tricking” white blood cells and then hijacking the cells to ensure its own survival. The finding is important because P. gingivalis is a leading cause of periodontal diseases, a proven contributor to the […]