Position: Professor & Chair

Organization: Department of Periodontics, University of Pennsylvania

Biography Text: Dr. Patricia Miguez, DDS, MS, PhD, is Professor and Chair in the Department of Periodontics at the University of Pennsylvania. She is a dental graduate and periodontal specialist from Brazil (Federal University of Santa Catarina) and obtained her Masters in Restorative (Operative) Dentistry and PhD in Oral Biology - and a second certificate in Periodontology at UNC-CH. She is a Diplomate of the American Board of Periodontology and a Fellow of the American Association for Dental and Craniofacial Research (AADOCR). She is also a Past-President of the International Association for Dental Research (IADR) Women in Science Network (WISN). Dr. Miguez has received multiple awards for her dedication to academia and excellence in research from the American Academy of Periodontology (AAP), AAP Foundation – including the prestigious Bud and Linda Tarrson Fellowship and the R. Earl Robinson Regeneration Award, IADR, AADOCR and has been recognized by her home state of Santa Catarina, Brazil, with the highest research merit given her contribution to the profession and community. She is a member of the editorial board of several prestigious journals including the Journal of Dental Research and the Journal of Periodontology. She has been continuously funded by several organizations such as the Osteology Foundation, IADR, and the National Institutes of Health (NIH) for her research focusing on exploring the biology and biomodification of the extracellular matrix (ECM, the microenvironment around cells) to modulate homeostasis, oral disease and connective tissue regeneration. Her laboratory explores the potential for natural plant-based compounds to modify the ECM, modulate disease and improve tissue skeletal and craniofacial repair. She has authored multiple original research peer-reviewed publications and several book chapters of relevance to Periodontology, regenerative medicine and oral health. She is a practicing clinician, teacher and researcher, and mentors pre-dental, dental, master’s, doctoral and post-doctoral scholars and faculty. Besides her various leadership and mentoring roles via AADOCR, IADR and the American Dental Education Association (ADEA), she has served in the Research Submissions Committee for the AAP, Ambassador for the AAPF and previously served as member and Chair of the AAP Teaching Fellowship Committee for the foundation. In 2024, she was elected an AADOCR Fellow.