PhD opportunities

Sense organs are essential for communication with our environment providing visual, auditory and olfactory input. Among the most common birth defects, are craniofacial malformations often associated with sensory defects, while age-related loss of vision, smell and hearing is increasingly common in the ageing population.

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There are three unique features common to all vertebrates: the vertebral column, the brain as part of the nervous system and a complex head where sense organs became concentrated.

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One of the key questions in biology is to uncover how cells with the same genomic information become different from each other. This is not only important to understand embryo development, but also to determine what goes wrong in disease, how we can use this information to promote tissues regeneration or to reprogram cells for stem cell-based therapies.

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The evolution of the incredibly complex jaw apparatus of snakes allows many species to consume prey much larger than themselves. This study explores the development, structure and function of two lower jaw specialisations unique to most snake species, namely the free mandibular symphysis and the intramandibular hinge joint.

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Hearing as one of the five human senses plays a crucial role in our quality of life and integration into society, impacting on speech and language skills. Congenital hearing loss has been estimated to occur at an incidence of 1 in 1000 births, and as such has a major impact on the life of many children.

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Chronic inflammatory periodontal disease (PD) is widespread globally with associations with systemic disease, ultimately leading to tooth loss. Current therapeutic strategies and products used in PD treatment and prevention rely on antimicrobial effects. To date, no management strategy has been created that effectively tackles the inflammatory response responsible to lead to the dysbiosis that causes PD.

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There is no doubt that the majority of disabled people are, and should be, receiving dental treatment in the community within general dental practices. A small, but significant, number of patients are still referred regularly for specialist care from Special Care Dentistry Teams, however, and this study sets out to examine who these special care patients are and what it is that makes them special.

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The aim of this study is to undertake qualitative interviews to develop an understanding of the impact of TMJ on the daily lives of people living with atypical facial pain.

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This research will explore the experiences of dental students and practicing dentists self-identifying as having a disability with a focus on identifying barriers to successful practice and the ways these are, or should be, being negotiated.

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There is wide recognition that dentistry is changing and that skills and knowledge needed are also changing. A growing body of researchers are now looking at workforce planning and shaping the workforce of the future with a focus on the mix of skills and professions needed within the dental team (see for example Wanyonyi et al. 2014). What kinds of dentists are we trying to create?

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Erosive tooth wear is a common clinical condition that can result in destruction of tooth tissue (1). This PhD will investigate the role of proteases on the salivary pellicle in the protection of enamel from erosion and abrasion.

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The successful management of peri-implantitis is based on the evaluation of composite therapeutic end-points, similar to those of periodontal treatment, that correspond to disease resolution and include the presence of shallow pockets without any bleeding on probing or suppuration and the maintenance of radiographic bone levels.

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Chronic inflammatory periodontal disease (PD) is widespread globally with associations with systemic disease, ultimately leading to tooth loss. Current therapeutic strategies and products used in PD treatment and prevention rely on antimicrobial effects. To date, no management strategy has been created that effectively tackles the inflammatory response responsible to lead to the dysbiosis that causes PD.

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Vitamin D deficiency is a widespread problem in the UK. Vitamin D plays a protective role against a myriad of chronic diseases. Periodontal disease is the number one cause of tooth loss in the UK. Current treatments fail to reverse existing damage to bone and supporting tissues.

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Dental professionals and students have a responsibility to behave professionally both online and offline.

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Learning in the digital age gives educational institutions opportunities to gather rich data which could be used for inferring the progress of learners in learning technologies and environments. However, while large amounts of data are available, little interpretation about them is being made.

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Simulation of dental caries has always been a challenge to truly replicate the texture, softness and colour for haptically enabled virtual simulators. This research project will explore the 1. variations between clinicians on acceptable amounts of caries to leave in a HDVRS 2. develop more realistic caries representations 3. assess student performance in caries removal on the new models

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Oral cancer has good prognosis when detected at an early stage. However, up to half of patients are diagnosed with advanced lesions, when 5-year survival rates are as low as 20%. This project will focus on the development and evaluation of initiatives to encourage timely presentation of symptoms of oral cancer. The project will involve developing an evidence-based online training package for the dental team, testing the feasibility of delivering this intervention and assessing the impact on patients and the dental team.

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This project focuses on the process and content of communication between dentists and dental patients. Specifically, the project will investigate how dentists discover patient's information needs and check patient's understanding of information during routine dental consultations, investigate patient preferences, and determine the impact of differing methods of communication.

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Prognosis for head and neck cancer is dependent on timely diagnosis and prompt treatment. However, some patients face difficulties in accessing, attending or completing treatment due to ongoing issues with addiction or their mental health. The focus of this doctoral research will be to assess the impact of a new community support service for patients with addiction and/or mental health issues.

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Dental implants are used for treating either partial or complete edentulous patients. Despite their good survival rate, there is a still high prevalence of peri-implant diseases. This is classified as peri-implant mucositis which is reversible inflammation of the soft tissues around an implant and peri-implantitis which involves inflammation leading to loss of supporting bone around an implant. This project will provide novel insights into the role of host responses related to peri-implantitis in predisposing to CVD risk.

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Aerobility is a charity which offers those with any disability the opportunity to experience a flight in a small aircraft. For some it is a once in a lifetime experience, for others it can comprise a full course leading to a pilot’s licence. The aim of the charity Is to improve sense of self worth, quality of life and wellbeing of its clients. KCL, through partnership with Aerobillity, is looking to develop an academic assessment of the outcomes for clients, volunteers and the families of those clients

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Oral cancers are severe life-limiting diseases, particularly when discovered in the later stages. Early detection in precancerous or early cancer stages (i.e., carcinoma in situ) is among the most important measures for reducing morbidity and mortality rates in oral cancer patients.

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The overall aim of this research is to develop a 3D printed PEEK scaffold that has a surface and internal geometry similar to bone which will be further investigated as to whether different surface preparations (i.e. physical, chemical and organic) enhance the proliferation of human (HOB) osteoblast cells and, assess whether any osteo-inductive property can be imparted by specific self-assembling peptides (SAP’s) on the differentiation of mesenchymal stem cells (MSC’s).