Faculty

The National Institutes of Health (NIH) has awarded a $20.6M million grant over five years to establish one of five Human Virome Characterization Centers (HVCC), leveraging UCLA leadership and the collective expertise of interdisciplinary scientists nationwide to advance understanding of the virome's role in human health and disease across the oral–gut–brain axis. (NIH U54 AG089335 Human Virome Characterization Center for the Oral-Gut-Brain Axis)

The UCLA School of Dentistry has announced the appointment of Dr. Hung Ton-That as the new Chair of the Division of Oral and Systemic Health Sciences, effective Feb. 1, 2025. He will also hold the Dr. No-Hee Park Chair in Dentistry.

Reprinted with permission from the Western Los Angeles Dental Society, from the winter 2024 edition of WestViews Magazine.

By Teresa Yang, D.D.S. ‘83

The UCLA School of Dentistry had a robust presence at the recently concluded 2024 American Academy of Periodontology (AAP) Annual Meeting in San Diego, highlighted by faculty, residents, graduates, and researchers bringing numerous awards back to Westwood.

The American Dental Association (ADA) has announced that Dr. Yvonne Hernandez-Kapila, the UCLA School of Dentistry’s associate dean for research and holder of the Felix and Mildred Yip Endowed Chair, has been awarded the Norton M. Ross Award for Excellence in Clinical Research.

Dr. William Solberg, a UCLA School of Dentistry faculty member for 27 years and a significant contributor to the study of temporomandibular joint (TMJ) disorders and orofacial pain, passed away on Sept. 2 in Los Angeles. He was 88.

UCLA will lower the flag at Dickson Court to half-mast on Thursday, Nov. 7 in his memory.

Three recently-published news stories leaned on the expertise of UCLA School of Dentistry faculty members:

Insoon Chang, M.S. ‘09, D.D.S. ‘13, Ph.D. ‘17, an assistant professor in the UCLA School of Dentistry’s Section of Endodontics, has been selected as one of only 12 nationwide mentees in the fifth cohort of the American Association for Dental, Oral, and Craniofacial Research’s (AADOCR) Mentoring an Inclusive Network for a Diverse Workforce of the Future program.

A collective 178 years of experience and dedication to the UCLA School of Dentistry were celebrated during a send-off for seven retiring faculty and staff members on June 26.

Reuben Kim, D.D.S. ’03, Ph.D. ’08, has been appointed chair of the UCLA School of Dentistry’s Division of Preventive and Restorative Sciences, while Marc Hayashi, D.M.D., M.B.A., F.A.C.D, F.I.C.D., is the new chair of the Section of Restorative Dentistry.