Research Summary
Dr. Kevin Matthew Byrd, DDS, Ph.D. is currently the Anthony R. Volpe Research Scholar and Manager of Oral & Craniofacial Research at ADA Science & Research Institute (ADASRI) in his Lab of Oral & Craniofacial Innovation (Gaithersburg, MD). He is a clinician-scientist who completed his DDS at the University of Michigan in 2013 and Ph.D. at the University of North Carolina Adams School of Dentistry (UNC ASOD) in 2018. Dr. Byrd has received numerous research and clinical honors and held various professional affiliations and memberships. With funding support from the CGIBD, Dr. Byrd’s research has historically focused on understanding oral stem cell heterogeneity and how their extrinsic and intrinsic regulation contributes to wound healing and head and neck cancers. In his current role, he remains committed to continuing collaborations across disciplines and universities–from basic science discoveries to clinical applications to benefit human health. In his new role, he is interested in continuing to explore 1) oral epithelial stem regulation and heterogeneity in health and disease, 2) technologies to model and improve oral wound healing and soft tissue grafting, and 3) mapping the unique cell types of the upper aerodigestive tract in health and disease across the lifespan.
Relevance of Research to CGIBD Mission: Dr. Byrd’s research interests are directly aligned with the CGIBD’s mission to promote and enhance multidisciplinary research to reduce the burden of digestive disease. He is doing that by investigating the bidirectional link between oral and intestinal niches through advanced genomic analyses of oral tissues and fluids in health and inflammatory bowel diseases. This interest has led to active and sustained collaborations with CGIBD members to uncover the systemic link between oral inflammation and gut inflammation — the so-called oral-gut or even the “gum-gut axis” (doi: 10.3389/fimmu.2021.620124). To achieve these goals, he collaborates with members of the CGIBD cores, benefitting from their expertise in single cell ‘omics, the microbiome, and biostatistics.
CGIBD Focus Area(s): Oral Manifestations of Gastrointestinal Disease, Oral-Systemic Interactions, Inflammatory Bowel Diseases
Collaborators: Gulati, Magness, Sheikh, Wallet, Williams
