Researching for the future
Dental hygiene student Emily Rosales presents her research.
Dental students, dental hygiene students and graduate students shared their latest research at the 50th Annual Student Scholars and Research Day April 2 at Texas A&M College of Dentistry. Projects ranged from the impact of attendance on the academic performance and learning styles of dental students – attending class is essential – to fluoride as a therapeutic agent for periodontal disease in the geriatric population.
Led by Dr. L. Bruno Ruest, associate professor in biomedical sciences, and a team of faculty and staff, it showcases various aspects of dentistry and fosters collaboration between students. Sponsored by the Dallas Chapter of the American Association for Dental, Oral, and Craniofacial Research, Ruest said participation has grown in the past few years from a dozen or so abstracts to nearly 50 this year.
“Training the next generation of scientists is important…,” Ruest said. “What they are doing is advancing the knowledge we have, and by advancing the knowledge, we are able develop new treatments for different conditions.”
Most students did their research over the summer, he said. Some come back two or three summers in a row.
Nick Baldetti, winner of an AADOCR award.
AADOCR presented monetary awards to Nicholas Baldetti, a third-year dental student, and Ryan Eldin, a second-year student.
2025 Results
Dental Hygiene Students:
1st Place: Alysha Williams, Gracey Scott, Cora Owens
Mentored by Professor Martha Estrada and Professor Ariana Vargas
2nd place: Colleen Dundas, Macie Harris, Emma Pearse
Mentored by Professors Maureen Brown and Chelsi Graham
3rd place: Cristina Flores, Gia Truong
Mentored by Profs. Leah Spittle and Eric Fox
Honorable Mention: Jennifer Truong, Nina Luong, LeeAnn Nguyen
Mentored by Profs. Eric Fox and Ariana Vargas
Dental Students
Poster Presentations
Clinical and Educational Research (ADEA Academic Dental Careers Fellowship Program)
1st Place: Adriana Beruvides
Mentored by Dr. Victoria Woo (diagnostic sciences)
2nd Place: Leslie Nguyen
Mentored by Dr. Matthew Kesterke (orthodontics)
3rd Place: Taehyeon Kim
Mentored by Dr. Alicia Spence (comprehensive dentistry)
Honorable Mention: Katherine Xia
Mentored by Dr. Lara Coseo (comprehensive dentistry)
Basic & Translational Research (AADOCR)
1st Place: Ryan Eldin
Mentored by Drs Chi Zhang (biomedical sciences)
2nd Place: Arianna Mogharrabi
Mentored by Dr. Yan Jing (orthodontics)
3rd Place: Katherine Xia
Mentored by Drs. Lara Coseo (comprehensive dentistry) and Matthew Kesterke (orthodontics)
Honorable mention: Duyen Le
Mentored by Dr. Amal Noureldin (public health sciences)
Oral Presentations
1st Place: Nicholas Baldetti
Mentored by Dr. Feng Tao (biomedical sciences)
2nd Place: Michelle Wu
Mentored by Dr. Hua Zhang (biomedical sciences)
Campbell Keating and Dr. Youngbo Lu
Graduate Students
Poster Presentations
1st Place: Ran Tao
Mentored by Dr. Feng Tao (biomedical sciences)
2nd Place: Joshua Allen
Mentored by Dr. Victoria Woo (diagnostic sciences)
Oral Presentations
By PhD OCBS Students
1st Place: Paria Dehghanian
Mentored by Dr. Yan Jing (orthodontics)
2nd Place: Sanjaya Thapa
Mentored by Dr. Xiaofang Wang (biomedical sciences)
By Clinical Graduate Students
1st Place: Parker Green
Mentored by Likith Reddy
2nd Place: Alberto Peraza Labrador
Mentored by Dr. Madhu Shrestha (diagnostic sciences)
Special Awards
Presented by the AADOCR Dallas Section
Outstanding Investigator Award (oral presentation): Nicholas Baldetti
Outstanding Investigator Award (poster presentation): Ryan Eldin