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Contact Details

Phone
+64 3 479 9255
Email
carolina.loch@otago.ac.nz
Position
Senior Lecturer
Department
Department of Oral Sciences
Qualifications
BSc MSc PhD
Research summary
Oral Biology

Research

My research is focused on evolutionary oral biology and comparative dental morphology, mainly using animal teeth to gather a wide range of information about the biology, evolution and interactions with the environment of fossil and recent species. Comparative dental anatomy and ultrastructure are some of the key components of my research.

I am also interested in dental hard tissues processing and analyses using modern analytical techniques such as electron microscopy, biomechanical testing, geochemical analysis and micro-computed tomography.

Additional details

I am part of the Craniofacial Biology and Biomechanics and Oral Implantology Programmes of the SJWRI. I have worked in collaboration with Prof. Paul Brunton, Dr. Don Schwass, Prof. Warwick Duncan, among others. A few of my recent research projects spanned from the biomechanics of the human jaw and development of dental appliances in the interface of oral and general health, to the laboratory testing and characterisation of new dental materials.

In 2013 I concluded a multidisciplinary PhD on the "Morphology, function and evolution of teeth in fossil and modern Odontocetes (Cetacea)" in the Department of Geology and the Faculty of Dentistry. The research was supervised by Prof Ewan Fordyce (Geology) and the late Prof Jules Kieser (SJWRI), who was one of the most inspiring and influential figures in my academic formation.

Previous to my PhD, I completed a BSc in Biology and a MSc in Zoology in my home country, Brazil. In addition to the joys of science, I am also interested in martial arts, football, Latin American cultures, tramping and travelling.

@LochCarolina

Publications

Aziz, S., Loch, C., Li, K. C., Anthonappa, R., Meldrum, A., & Ekambaram, M. (2024). Remineralization potential of dentifrices with calcium sodium phosphosilicate and functionalized tri‐calcium phosphate in the deeper incipient carious lesions: An in vitro study. Clinical & Experimental Dental Research, 10, e876. doi: 10.1002/cre2.876 Journal - Research Article

Loch, C., & Marmontel, M. (2024). Tooth wear and dental pathology in Amazon River dolphins (Inia geoffrensis) and tucuxis (Sotalia fluviatilis). Latin American Journal of Aquatic Mammals. Advance online publication. doi: 10.5597/lajam00318 Journal - Research Article

Towle, I., & Loch, C. (2024). Variation in enamel prism size in primate molars. Archives of Oral Biology, 160, 105895. doi: 10.1016/j.archoralbio.2024.105895 Journal - Research Article

Towle, I., Loch, C., Martinéz de Pinillos, M., Modesto-Mata, M., & Hlusko, L. J. (2024). Severe enamel defects in wild Japanese macaques. International Journal of Zoology, 2024, 445492. doi: 10.1155/2024/8445492 Journal - Research Article

Weatherly, K., Brunton, P., Loch, C., McKeage, J. W., Ruddy, B. P., Taberner, A. J., & White, D. E. (2024). Case study of user experience-driven design in a new local anaesthetic dentistry jet injection device. Journal of the Royal Society of New Zealand, 54(2), 177-189. doi: 10.1080/03036758.2022.2113809 Journal - Research Article

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