Sunday O. Akintoye, BDS, DDS, MS

Professional Biography

Dr. Akintoye is a clinician-scientist with interests in basic and translational research related to metabolic bone disorders, orofacial complications of cancer therapies and cancer health disparities. His previous work on fibrous dysplasia of bone described the dental features of maxillo-mandibular fibrous dysplasia associated with McCune-Albright syndrome. His research has focused on orofacial bone mesenchymal stem cells, site-specific characteristics and therapeutic applications as donor graft to bridge osseous defects in the maxillofacial region.

His laboratory reported that human orofacial mesenchymal stem cells within the jaw bone are unique and different from those in non-oral skeletal sites in terms of their growth, lifespan and bone regenerative properties. He is studying the modulatory roles of orofacial bone mesenchymal stem cells in the pathogenesis of jaw osteonecrosis and how their unique properties can be harnessed for oral bone healing. He expanded his bone research to include cancer health disparities with a focus on odontogenic neoplasms especially racial disparities associated with ameloblastoma recurrence.

Dr. Akintoye’s research has received funding support from the National Institutes of Health’s National Cancer Institute, the National Institute of Dental and Craniofacial Research, and the National Institute of Aging. He has also been funded by American Cancer Society, the University of Pennsylvania Research Foundation, the Penn Center for Musculoskeletal Disorders, the Penn Institute for Regenerative Medicine, and Private Foundations. Dr.  Akintoye was featured in the “Research Spotlight” of the National Cancer Institute/Center to Reduce Cancer Health Disparities and e-Newsletter of the National Institute of Dental and Craniofacial Research/National Institutes of Health. Dr. Akintoye was a Fulbright Scholar at the University of Lagos, Nigeria in 2015/2016.

Honors / Credentials

• ‘Herschfus Memorial Award’- in recognition of dedication and outstanding service to the American Academy of Oral Medicine, 2018.
• Chair, American Academy of Oral Medicine, Research and National Meeting Abstracts Review Committee, 2011-2016
• Chair, American Academy of Oral Medicine, Research Advancement Committee, 2017-2021
• Fulbright Scholar (Faculty of Dental Sciences, University of Lagos, Nigeria), 2015/2016
• Member, Board of Trustees, The American Academy of Oral Medicine, 2011- present
• Co-Section-Editor, Craniofacial Skeleton Sub-section, Current Osteoporosis Research Journal, 2021-present
• Member, Editorial Board, Bone Reports journal, 2021-present
• Associate Editor-Oral Diseases Journal, 2014-present
• Joseph and Josephine Rabinowitz Award for Research Excellence at Penn Dental Medicine, 2004 and 2017
• Clinical Fellow, Craniofacial and Skeletal Diseases Branch, NIDCR/NIH, 2001-2003
• Lester William Burket Research Award for Oral Medicine Residents conferred by the American Academy of Oral Medicine, 2002
• Clinical Fellow, Oral Medicine, Clinical Research Core, NIDCR/NIH, 1999-2001

Selected Publications

Education

• 2001-2003 Postdoctoral Training ,Craniofacial and Skeletal Diseases Branch, National Institute of Dental and Craniofacial Research/National Institutes of Health, Bethesda, MD
• Certificate, Oral Medicine/Clinical Research Training Fellowship, National Institute of Dental and Craniofacial Research/National Institutes of Health, Bethesda, MD, 1998-2001
• MS, Oral Biology, New York University, 1998
• DDS, New York University College of Dentistry, 1995
• BDS, University of Lagos Dental School, 1980