Periodontal diseases are among the most common diseases in the population. According to the Canadian Dental Association, around 7 in 10 Canadians suffer from some form of gum disease at some point in their lives. They are characterized by inflammation and destruction of tooth supporting structures. Their progression is determined by the interaction between microbes and the host immune response. Recently, locally administered therapies have been proposed as a support to the gold standard treatment scaling and root planning, but no consensus on their effectiveness is present.

People with cirrhosis, a progressive scarring of the liver, often experience frequent and prolonged hospitalizations which have significant impacts to their quality of life. There are many areas for improvement in cirrhosis care such as the enhanced promotion of complication-specific order panels like that for hepatic encephalopathy, a serious complication caused by a buildup of toxins in the blood and the most common cause of hospitalizations.

Oral cancer (OC) presents a global burden on society and the healthcare system with high incidence rates and poor prognosis. Despite the oral cavity being easily accessible for visual assessment, lesions are often detected at an advanced stage when the prognosis is poor and radical interventions are necessary. An invasive biopsy of a clinically suspicious lesion is the current standard of care for OC diagnosis and lesion monitoring; however, repeated biopsies may not be feasible.

Correction of misaligned teeth requires orthodontic braces treatment. Cone-beam computed tomography (CBCT) has been routinely used in orthodontic diagnosis and treatment planning in recent years. Its three-dimensional capability to view images has a significant advantage over traditional 2D X-rays. However, CBCT typically delivers more radiation than conventional dental 2D X-rays.

The human oral cavity contains over 700 different bacterial species. In healthy people, these bacteria are living in harmony and not likely to cause diseases. However, sometimes this bacterial balance is disturbed as the oral pathogenic bacteria start to overgrow causing many oral implications such as halitosis, sore throat, dental caries and gingivitis. A promising solution to tackle this microbial population destabilization is the use of beneficial microbes called probiotics.

Computer vision and artificial intelligence provide unprecedented opportunities to realize new image-based biomarkers with the potential to drive precision drug development and personalized medicine; particularly in degenerative disease of eye and brain, where tissue sampling is not possible and where no treatments exists. This research project will deploy AI models for multiple tasks including segmentation, classification, anomaly identification and disease progression estimates taken from ophthalmic data collections across multiple clinics.

Cohesys is developing a surgical tape indicated for stabilizing fractures to the face and cranium. In order for a tape to function inside the body, the adhesive must be non-toxic and be able to adhere and maintain strength overtime, in an environment which is wet, filled with proteins and other molecules and be able to withstand physiological temperature (~37˚C). As such, the Santerre lab at the University of Toronto has developed an adhesive platform designed to function in vivo.

Dental caries affects the majority of the world’s population and causes tooth decay and loss. Bacteria in the mouth cause this disease. Sugar consumption plays a role in causing these bacteria to make acid that results in dental caries. Studies have shown that a type of sugar alcohol, called xylitol, can help prevent this disease. We will be studying the growth of oral bacteria that cause dental caries. We will examine this growth after applying an oral ultrasound gel (manufactured by SmileSonica Inc) that contains xylitol.

Tooth decay (dental cavities or caries) affects over 90% of the population worldwide, however their treatment with "white" resin composite fillings yields significantly worse results than classic metallic fillings. Caries-causing bacteria penetrate the space between tooth and filling, causing further tooth decay. This damage must be treated by removing the previous filling and diseased tooth tissue, and subsequently re-filled. We have developed novel antimicrobial microspheres that are loaded into the dental filling material, preventing bacterial infiltration for the patient’s lifetime.

Idiopathic pulmonary (lung) fibrosis (IPF) affects 5 million people with a mean survival time of 2-3 years after diagnosis. In lung fibrosis, connective tissue fibroblasts excessively produce and stiffen collagen matrix. The resulting scar destroys the delicate lung architecture, decreases lung compliance and gas exchange, ultimately rendering patients unable to breathe. The only effective treatment for IPF patients is a lung transplant. Typical of lung fibrosis is the chronic co-existence of fibroblasts, innate immune macrophages, and adaptive immune T-cells.