UTDB wins trophy as leading food drive contributor

Faculty, staff and students of the UT Dental Branch have won the Traveling Trophy for being the leading contributors to the UTHSC-H food drive earlier this summer. The health science center contributed $5,000 in cash and 2,691 pounds of food in the Spirit of Texas Food Drive, benefiting the Houston Food Bank, which can purchase $8 worth of food for every $1 donated. That means the $5,000 raised by the health science center will purchase $40,000 worth of food for those in need.

The UTDB coordinators were Ronda Lowe, Kathy Thomas and Nancy Bass.  The annual UT Health Science Center Food Drive is sponsored in conjunction with KHOU-TV's "Spirit of Texas" Food Drive, the Texas Medical Center, the Gulf Coast Regional Blood Center, and the Kroger Company.

Food drive coordinators Kathy Thomas (front), Nancy Bass (left) and Ronda Lowe show off the Traveling Trophy that signifies UTDB’s top-contributor status.

Periodontic Department welcomes new faculty

Three new faculty members have joined the Periodontic Department. They are Neel Bhatavadekar, B.D.S.; Gena Tribble, D.D.S., and Kavitha Parthasarathy, B.D.S.

Bhatavadekar earned a master’s degree in biomedical engineering from the University of Florida at Gainesville, plus a certificate in periodontics and an MPH from the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill. His clinical research interests involve biomaterials, biomechanics and public health.

Originally from Macon, Ga., Tribble has a Ph.D. in microbiology from East Carolina University and did her post-doctoral training at the University of Texas at Austin. She was most recently employed by the University of Florida Dental School as a research assistant professor in the Oral Biology Department.

Tribble’s research focuses on black-pigmented anaerobic bacteria and the development of periodontal disease and other oral and systemic infections.  Her broad research goals are to understand the mechanisms used by these bacteria to avoid eradication from the host oral cavity. 

Parthasarathy was educated at Bangalore University in India, where she graduated with a B.D.S. She earned a master’s degree in oral science and a certificate in periodontics from University at Buffalo School of Dental Medicine in New York.  Her research interests will follow her master’s thesis, which looked at the effect -- on the cellular level -- of Emdogain on human gingival fibroblasts.

Neel Bhatavadekar, B.D.S.

Gena Tribble, D.D.S.

Kavitha Parthasarathy, B.D.S.

Melchor elected as officer for Hispanic Dental Association

Margo Y. Melchor, R.D.H., clinical assistant professor in the Periodontics Department of the School of Dental Hygiene, has been elected treasurer of the national Hispanic Dental Association. With this position, she will advance to serve as the association’s president in 2010.

Spence elected as officer of South Central Texas HIMS Society

Senior Systems Administrator James “Jim” Spence has been elected secretary of the South Central Texas Chapter of the Health Information Management Systems Society for the 2007-2008 term.

Trevino wins research award from AAWD

Fourth-year D.D.S. student Lisa Trevino of Houston is among 11 students nationwide chosen to receive 2007 Colgate Research Awards from the American Association of Women Dentists. Each year, AAWD awards scholarships to Junior and/or Senior dental students who have shown academic distinction and demonstrated excellence in research. 

Karen Adler Storthz, Ph.D., associate dean for research and professor in the Department of Diagnostic Sciences, nominated Trevino for the award, which includes a $500 cash prize.