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The School of Dentistry held its 39th Annual Research and Clinical Symposium on Saturday, April 10, 2021. Pre- and postdoctoral student presenters gathered on a virtual platform to showcase their work in basic science, public health, clinical science, and education. The San Antonio Chapter of the American Association of Dental Research (SA-AADR) organized the event in partnership with the Office of the Dean and chapter members moderated breakout rooms for oral and poster presentations of dental residents, postdoctoral and PhD students, dental students, and dental hygiene students. Eight faculty judges devoted their attention among the separate presentation rooms to select the 2021 awardees. 1st Place – Oral Presentation & SCADA Travel Award Recipient • Kamron H. Call: “Targeted Isolation of Pre-synaptic Synaptosomes in IB4+ Non-peptidergic C-type Fibers”, Authors: Call, K.H., Jeske, N.A. 1st Place – Oral Presentations • Michael A. Eskander: “Validation of Pre-operative Cyst Screening Tool using Cone-beam Computed Tomography”, Authors: Eskander, M.A., Chrepa, V. • Dominic Arris: “Sensory Nerve-Immune Interactions Regulate Oral Cancer Progression”, Authors: Arris, D., Kareh, V., Boyd, J., Tumanov, A., Shein, S., Ruparel, S. 1st Place – Poster Presentations • Elizabeth Nguyen: “Anatomical and Functional Study of Dental Pulp, Gingiva, and TG in situ in an Animal Model”, Authors: Nguyen, E., Shannonhouse, J., Kim, Y.S. • Jaclyn N. Merlo: “Contribution of Oral Cancer Pain Signaling via Lymphotoxin-Beta Receptor”, Authors: Merlo, J.N., Wu, P., Ruparel, S.B. • Yan Zhang: “A Novel Genetically-Encoded Voltage Indicator Reveals in Vivo Dynamics of Primary Sensory Neurons”, Authors: Zhang, Y., Shannonhouse, J., Lin, M.Z., Kim, Y.S. 2nd Place – Poster Presentations • Rebekah Salinas: “Interaction of the Bone Morphogenic Protein-2 and the TGF-Beta Signaling Pathway: Immunohistochemical Analysis”, Authors: Salinas, R., Harris, S. • Katie V. Lillis: “Evaluating the Role of Trigeminal Ganglia Nociceptors in the Modulation of Osteoblast Activity”, Authors: Lillis, K.V., Diogenes, A.R. • Pei Wang: “Impact of SARS CoV-2 pandemic on opioid prescriptions by dental and medical providers”, Authors: Wang, P., Ruparel, M., Hargreaves, K., Khan, A. Alongside the School of Dentistry, the SA-AADR announced the inaugural awardee of the “Distinguished Research Mentor Award” as Shivani B. Ruparel, MS, PhD, associate professor and director of research in the Department of Endodontics. This new award is given in recognition of outstanding dedication and enthusiasm as a research role model. Faculty were nominated by trainees of all levels. The School of Dentistry would like to thank the San Antonio Chapter of the American Association of Dental Research, the Office of the Dental Dean, the Office of the Vice President for Research, Omicron Kappa Upsilon, the American Association for Dental Research, and Dentsply Sirona for their dedication and sponsorship of this annual event.