The New Zealand Dental Association and Ministry of Health (MoH) are key supporters of our cutting-edge dental and oral health research, through the NZ Dental Research Foundation (NZDRF) and MoH Oral Health Research funding rounds. Funding from these grants supports the research of our academic and research staff, as well as training of our postgraduate students.
In the 2018 NZDRF funding round, a total of $133,432 in funding has been awarded for research projects led by our staff, PhD and DClinDent students. SJWRI researchers were also principal or key named investigators on projects awarded $95,742 in targeted Ministry of Health Oral Health Research funding. As always, we thank the NZ Dental Research Foundation and the Ministry of Health for their continued support.
New Zealand Dental Research Foundation
Established in 1964, the NZ Dental Research Foundation awards grants for research projects related to dentistry. Its overall purpose is to "promote, foster and extend the study and practice of the art and science of dentistry in New Zealand". Since its inception, the Foundation has provided financial support for decades of dental and oral health research projects within the Dental School and the SJWRI, to help extend the boundaries of dental knowledge and to promote the fostering and extension of the study and practice of the art and science of dentistry in New Zealand. The Research Foundation is funded by donations from dental practitioners, the dental supply industry and other businesses, as well as profits from the annual NZDA Conference and other fundraising activities. The SJWRI and the Faculty are hugely grateful for the role and contribution of the NZDRF in supporting our research over the past five decades, in the process helping many of our Masters, PhD and specialising dental postgraduate students complete their studies.
In the 2018 NZDA Research Foundation grant round, projects led by SJWRI researchers were awarded a total of $133,432 in funding, including $4,100 from the International College of Dentists and $11,654 from the Continuing Dental Education Trust of Auckland.
| Lead investigator | Other named investigators | Project title | Awarded |
|---|---|---|---|
| Mohammad Arshad Aziz | Dr Benedict Seo, Dr Haizal Hussaini, A/Prof Merilyn Hibma (UO Pathology), Prof Alison Rich | Analysing heat shock proteins and mRNA of specific oncogenes within exosomes derived from oral cancers | $15,000 |
| Dr Manikandan Ekambaram | Prof Cynthia KY Yiu (UHongKong), A/Prof Neil Waddell, Dr Kai Chun Li, Sam Lowrey (UO Physics), Dorothy Boyd, Yu-Lynn Lee | Bonding universal dental adhesive resin to developmentally hypomineralized enamel | $14,970 |
| Rachel Farrar | Prof Mauro Farella, Prof Warwick Duncan, Dr Joseph Antoun, Prof Birte Melsen (UAarhus) | Development of an ovine model for investigating effects of orthodontic tooth movement | $15,000 |
| Dr Lara Friedlander | Shaikha Al Samahi, Dr Trudy Milne, Dr Haizal Hussaini, Prof Alison Rich | Type 2 diabetes - how do human dental pulp cells respond to glucose and lipopolysaccharides? | $14,890 |
| Danielle Hodgkinson | Prof Mauro Farella, Dr Joseph Antoun, Dr Li Mei, Dr Austin Kang | Do orthodontic extractions ruin faces? | $11,654 |
| Dr Haizal Hussaini | Dr Harsha de Silva, Sajith Edirisinghe, Dr Trudy Milne, Prof Alison Rich | Expression of vascular endothelial growth factor and associated pathways in oral squamous cell carcinoma | $14,496 |
| Ludwig Jansen van Vuuren | Prof Warwick Duncan, A/Prof Neil Waddell, A/Prof Jonathan Broadbent | Development of a simulant model for clinically relevant testing of implant- and natural tooth-supported all-ceramic restorations [Phase Two] | $10,000 |
| Dr Hee Ji Lee | Prof Richard Cannon, A/Prof Brian Monk | Automated pipetting system for oral health and dental research | $15,000 |
|
Saeideh Nobakht |
A/Prof Dawn Coates, Prof Warwick Duncan, Dr Trudy Milne | Pleiotrophin family gene and protein expression in a sheep tooth socket model of bone healing | $14,255 |
| Nurul Izyan Zainuddin | Dr Haizal Hussaini, Dr Benedict Seo, Prof Alison Rich | Neuropilin-1 expression in the tumour microenvironment of oral squamous cell carcinoma | $8,167 |
Named investigators are from the SJWRI/Faculty of Dentistry, University of Otago unless otherwise noted. Italicized names are doctoral research (PhD/DClinDent) candidates.
ICD: International College of Dentists Award
CDET: Continuing Dental Education Trust (Auckland) Award
Ministry of Health Oral Health Research Grants
In 2007, the NZ Ministry of Health established a funding programme for oral health research, managed by the NZDA and its Research Foundation, to fund research targeted towards the oral health priorities of the Ministry. Priority is given to oral health research that targets children and adolescents; people of all ages with physical, intellectual, behavioural, or cognitive disabilities, or who are medically compromised; people experiencing inequalities of outcome (e.g. Maori, Pacific and low-income populations); maternal oral health; older adults; and research focusing on promoting oral health, building links with primary care and building the oral health workforce.
In the 2018 MoH Oral Health Research round, SJWRI researchers were named investigators on awards totalling $95,742. Of this, $53,093 was awarded to projects led by SJWRI investigators.
| Lead investigator |
Other named investigators | Project title | Awarded |
|---|---|---|---|
| Dr Lara Friedlander | Payman Hamadani, Prof Nick Chandler, A/Prof Ben Daniel (HEDC) | Managing elderly patients requiring endodontic treatment - a New Zealand practice based research study | $9,463 |
| Dr Lee Smith | Prof Murray Thomson, Dr Moira Smith (UOW Public Health) | The barriers to, and facilitators for, maintaining oral health and hygiene amongst a cohort of 40 dentate older home-based residing people who require additional living support | $43,630 |
| Dr Moira Smith (UOW Public Health) | William Leung (UOW PH), Prof Murray Thomson, Dr Graeme Ting | Estimating unmet dental need and associated resource utilisation costs, and exploring treatment funding options, for dependent older New Zealanders | $42,649 |
Named investigators are from the SJWRI/Faculty of Dentistry, University of Otago unless otherwise noted. Italicized names are doctoral research (PhD/DClinDent) candidates.
Congratulations to all those funded in this year's rounds.