The Department of Oral Biology is the only basic science department in the Faculty. The approval
of the formation of the department was obtained from the Ministry of Education in July 1994. The department supported the
expansion of the curriculum from a 4-year to a 5-year basic dental course in 1998 when the faculty sought recognition of the
dental degree from the General Dental Council of the United Kingdom.
The department
is involved in teaching dental undergraduates the basic aspects of dental anatomy, histology, biochemistry, physiology, microbiology
and molecular biology pertaining to the oral tissues. Clinical relevance is also included.
In the last
couple of years, the department has been involved in teaching the basic science course to postgraduate students preparing
for the Part I MFDS examination and also postgraduate students doing Masters in Clinical Dentistry. The department also offers
Postgraduate programmes by research - leading to PhD and Masters in Dental Science (MDSc). In research, the department supports
the faculty by providing equipment and expertise for basic science research in the undergraduate and postgraduate courses.
Mission statement:
To support the dental faculty by providing a high standard of basic science training and research
in order to prepare graduates towards a holistic approach in clinical problem solving related to the needs of the dental profession.
The oral biology course includes aspects on oral anatomy and histology, oral physiology, oral biochemistry
and oral microbiology.These subjects are covered in the first year of the basic dental
course. The course content was designed to produce the following learning outcome:
“To produce graduates who are competent to apply knowledge and able to relate their understanding
of the structures, functions, chemical composition, development, metabolic pathways of the oral tissues; and environment of
the oral cavity to the study and practice of dentistry”.
Oral
Anatomy
The study of oral anatomy includes the morphology of permanent and deciduous dentition,
occlusion and oral embryology i.e. the development of face and mouth.
Oral histology
The study of oral histology includes the development, structure and significance of
hard and soft dental tissues such as enamel, dentine, pulp, cementum, periodontal ligament, oral mucosa and alveolar bones.
Oral physiology
Oral physiology involves the understanding of the process of mastication, speech, detection
of taste and smell and control of salivation.
Oral biochemistry
The oral biochemistry topics include the structure of biological apatite, importance
of calcium and phosphorus, mechanism of mineralization of hard tissues, chemical composition of teeth and bones, role of nutrition
in bones and tooth development, metabolism of fluoride and mechanism of its action in the prevention of dental caries and
also saliva from the aspects of composition, characteristics, functions and its formation.
Oral microbiology
The oral microbiology subject includes the teaching of normal oral flora, plaque formation
and its relation to the development of dental caries.The significance of clinical
aspects and its relation to dental and genetics are also explained.
Research interestsin the department:
1.Saliva
research
2.Microbiological
and biochemical aspects of dental plaque
