“Researchers from the University of Louisville School of Dentistry, USA, 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 Health and Systemic Disease, will investigate […]

“Imagine what (smoking) could do to your teeth,” went an old slogan advertising a brand of smoker’s toothpaste. (The advertisement conveniently failed to mention the effects of smoking on the heart and lungs.) Dental researchers today might well lay claim to a reverse version of that ad: “Imagine what unhealthy teeth and gums could do to you.” That’s because what […]

“Imagine being able to protect your children from cavities by taking them, as toddlers, for a painless, nasal vaccination. Two University of Louisville researchers are laying the groundwork for that by turning E. coli bacteria from an enemy to a friend. The general public knows E. coli as a germ that causes food poisoning and diarrhea. It was the culprit […]

“‘Contrary to earlier predictions, dental caries is not a disease of the past,’ say Drs. George Hajishengallis and Shuang Liang of the University of Louisville School of Dentistry. ‘The disease is unlikely to be eradicated, unless novel preventive approaches are introduced to complement existing ones.’ Drs. Hajishengallis and Liang are in the midst of some fascinating research on using E.coli […]

“For most people, E. coli may as well be short for “I will make you so sick.” Researchers with the University of Louisville School of Dentistry believe that parts of the E. coli bacteria could be used to help keep people healthy — right down to their teeth. Research fellow Shuang Liang and Georgios Hajishengallis, associate professor of dentistry, have […]

“Researchers with the University of Louisville School of Dentistry have found that a nontoxic part of E. coli could lead to a vaccine against tooth decay. Research fellow Shuang Liang and Georgios Hajishengallis, associate professor of dentistry, have found that removing the toxic part of an E. coli protein renders it harmless yet still able to tell the body to […]