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SEMINAR
Department of Biomedical Engineering
The Craniofacial Region – A Tissue
Engineering Project
Wednesday, April 8
1034 Emerging Technologies Building
9:10 a.m.
Only few areas within the human body are as diverse and
multifunctional as the craniofacial region when it comes to materials
design and stem cell heterogeneity. The craniofacial region not only
includes specialized dental minerals such as enamel and dentin
but also soft tissues of the oral mucosa, masticatory musculature,
neurons, and the periodontal ligament. Well-recognized needs
for engineered tissues include the restoration of large-scale bone
defects of the jaws and cranial vault, nasal cartilages, teeth and
dental attachment tissues, and the temporo-mandibular joint.
In the past decade, our lab has conducted a number of studies
related to craniofacial tissue engineering, including: a stem cellbased approach toward periodontal ligament regeneration; the
development of a periodontal extracellular matrix-based scaffold;
nano-hydroxyapatites and cell fate decisions in periodontal tissues;
and the use of platelet-rich fibrin in periodontal regeneration
and bone defect repair. We will discuss insights gained from these
studies and explore the broader applicability of these strategies for
other tissues of the human body.
Tom Diekwisch, D.M.D., Ph.D.
Director, Center for Craniofacial
Research and Diagnosis
Chair, Department of Periodontics
Baylor College of Dentistry
Tom Diekwisch
Dr. Diekwisch holds degrees in dental medicine (D.M.D.), anatomy (Ph.D.) and philosophy (Ph.D.), all from the
Philipps-University of Marburg/FRG. From 1986-1990, Dr. Diekwisch worked as a lecturer, clinical instructor and
research associate in the Departments of Anatomy and Periodontics at the Philipps-University. After postdoctoral
training at the University of Southern California, he joined the faculty of Baylor College of Dentistry in Dallas/TX
in 1994, where he created an award-winning community science education outreach program titled “Habitat for
Science.” In 2001, Dr. Diekwisch was recruited to the University of Illinois at Chicago to become the first director
of the Brodie Laboratory for Craniofacial Genetics and the Allan G. Brodie Endowed Chair. Two years later, he was
appointed professor and head of the Department of Oral Biology at UIC. His research focuses on stem cells, tissue
engineering, chromatin and epigenetics, tooth movement, history of science, development and evolution of
tooth enamel and periodontal attachment. Besides oral biology, Dr. Diekwisch has held appointments in anatomy
and cell Biology, bioengineering, orthodontics and periodontics. In 2009, Dr. Diekwisch became an honorary
professor at Jilin University in Changchun, China. In 2014, Diekwisch returned to Baylor College of Dentistry as
the director of the Center for Craniofacial Research and Diagnosis and chair of the Department of Periodontics.