Joseph and Josephine Rabinowitz Award

The Joseph and Josephine Rabinowitz Award for Excellence in Research was designed to help Penn Dental Medicine faculty undertake pilot projects that will enable them to successfully apply for extramural sources of funding. Designed through the lens of a researcher, this ongoing grant evaluates research proposals for their scholarly merit, creativity and innovation; the significance of the research in advancing scientific knowledge; the prospects for future extramural funding; the availability of alternate funding sources; and in the case of junior faculty, evidence that the applicant will be working as an independent investigator and forwarding of the School’s research objectives. It was under development as early as 1994 with the first award presented in 2002.

This award was endowed through the generosity of the late Dr. Joseph “Jose” Rabinowitz, an active member of the School’s biochemistry faculty for 29 years, and his wife, the late Dr. Josephine “Josy,” a fellow Penn alum. Josy’s PhD was in the field of education. Her strong endorsement of education and research provided a hand in the development of this grant. Jose was known for his research in lipid and steroid biochemistry, and made the seminal discovery that HMG CoA was a key intermediate in cholesterol biosynthesis. His research helped lead to the development of the important class of cholesterol-lowering drugs known as statins.

The Rabinowitz family continues to support the values and priorities of this award. The 2023 recipients are announced on Research Day 2023 prior to the Joseph L. Rabinowitz Memorial Lecture.

Chider Chen, PhD
Assistant Professor, Department of Oral and Maxillofacial Surgery/Pharmacology

“A Unique Chondrocyte Progenitor Population Maintains Mandibular Bone Homeostasis”
The temporomandibular joint disorder (TMD) is caused by damage or breakdown of the joint cartilage between bones. Unlike
other skeletal tissues, cartilage has remarkably low regenerative potential. Despite its prevalence and impact, there are no specific therapeutics that target the root cause of TMD. Therefore, a new therapeutic approach through identifying and activating endogenous mandibular stem/progenitor cells is urgently needed to manage the disorder. In this study, we propose to characterize a unique Gli1+ chondroprogenitor population between mandibular and femoral condyle by using single cell RNA sequencing analysis. In addition, a CODEX Microfluidics System will be utilized to identify the spatial and molecular characteristics of the Gli1+ chondroprogenitor population. By using these cutting-edge experimental tools, this project supported by the Rabinowitz award will reveal a unique endogenous chondrocyte progenitor population in mandibular condyle that maintains mandibular bone homeostasis and provides a new therapeutic avenue for regenerative medicine in the temporomandibular joint.

Qunzhou Zhang, PhD
Research Assistant Professor, Department of Oral & Maxillofacial Surgery

“Optimization of Gingival Mesenchymal Stem Cell (GMSC)- derived Extracellular Vesicles for Peripheral Nerve Regeneration”
Debilitating peripheral nerve injuries can cause considerable long- term disability. Mesenchymal stem cells (MSCs) have shown great promise for peripheral nerve regeneration (PNR). However, there have been no approved MSC-based products for PNR due to the well-recognized heterogeneity of MSCs.

We pioneered in the isolation of a putative subpopulation of MSC from human gingival tissues (GMSCs). Through non-genetical approaches, we were able to reprogram GMSCs into neural crest- stem like cells (NCSC) or Schwann cell precursor-like cells, which exhibit enhanced pro-nerve regenerative potentials compared with their parental GMSC counterparts. In this proposal, we hypothesize that GMSCs primed under defined NCSC-induction conditions (iGMSCs) are licensed to increase the secretion of extracellular vesicles (EVs) with enhanced pro-nerve regenerative potentials. We will 1) determine the quality and biological functions of EVs secreted by iGMSCs and their parental GMSC counterparts; 2) investigate the pro-nerve regenerative potentials of iGMSC- and GMSC-derived EVs in a sciatic nerve crush injury model in rats.

Accomplishment of this project will support our future NIH or DOD translational grant applications aiming at developing safe and effective cell-free products for PNR.

Flavia Teles, DDS, MS, DMSc
Associate Professor, Department of Clinical and Translational Sciences

“Integrating Omics-Data via Deep Learning to Predict Periodontitis Progression”
Periodontitis is the most common cause of tooth loss among US adults. Further, it increases the risk for systemic conditions such as diabetes, cardiovascular and respiratory diseases. Thus, early identification of periodontitis and of high-risk individuals is critical. However, there are no practical means of doing so.

In this project we will use metagenomic sequencing to determine the subgingival microbiome of patients with severe periodontitis presenting advanced disease progression. Then, we will employ artificial intelligence approaches to devise biological disease classifications and predictive models of clinical outcomes by integrating existing longitudinal immunological, clinical and demographic data with the microbiological information.

Results from this project will support future NIH grant applications aiming at understanding identifying and predicting high risk for periodontitis, and development of more precise and efficient approaches to diagnosis, treatment and prevention.

Yuan Liu, DDS, MS
Research Associate, Division of Restorative Dentistry, Department of Preventive & Restorative Sciences

“Association Between Early Candida Infection (Oral Thrush) and Severe Early Childhood Caries”
Severe early childhood caries (S-ECC) is a major public health problem characterized by dysbiotic oral microbial burden leading to a persistent and virulent biofilm on the teeth of toddlers that causes rampant tooth decay as well as hurts the general health. Emerging clinical evidence has spotlighted the potential role of Candida albicans in S-ECC. Furthermore, our retrospective study revealed that oral thrush (oropharyngeal candidiasis or OPC) detection in toddlers less than 12 months of age was strongly associated with the development of dental caries. However, only cross-sectional human studies have been performed thus far. Longitudinal studies are warranted to better assess the causal association between OPC and S-ECC in toddlers to determine the fungal role in caries. To address this, the proposed research will be focused on conducting a 2-year prospective longitudinal study to (1) investigate the association between early OPC and the onset and severity of S-ECC in a cohort of infants, and (2) evaluate the influence of OPC on the functional plaque microbiome of infants. The Rabinowitz award will allow us to perform a pilot study and collect data for future large-scale mechanistic clinical studies as well as develop novel strategies to prevent S-ECC from a fungal perspective.