Periodontal Disease and Atherosclerotic Vascular Disease

Robert J. Genco, D.D.S., Ph.D., is the director of the Buffalo Periodontal Disease Research Center and vice provost and director of the University at Buffalo Office of Science, Technology Transfer and Economic Outreach. His research interests include studying the causes, risk factors and systemic effects of periodontal disease, as well as its management.

Dr. Genco has worked for more than three decades on laboratory and clinical studies that have helped in understanding the causes, prevention, and treatment of periodontal disease. He also described the effects of periodontal diseases on diabetes, heart disease, and stroke. He helped establish Porphyromonas gingivalis as a major cause of periodontal infections in humans by demonstrating a strong immune response to this organism. These studies led to the identification of neutrophils as key protective cells against periodontal pathogens. His studies have demonstrated the importance of eliminating periodontal disease-causing bacteria for successful treatment and prevention of periodontal diseases. In another line of investigation, Dr. Genco and his colleagues have shown that locally applied, platelet derived  growth factor leads to closure of critical-sized periodontal defects when coupled with successful treatment of periodontal infections, and these studies have led to the development of an FDA approved product using this growth factor to treat periodontal disease.

Dr. Genco and his colleagues have identified several important risk indicators for periodontal disease including diabetes mellitus, smoking, P. gingivalis, B. forsythus, stress, inadequate coping, osteopenia, low dietary calcium, and obesity.  Recently, Dr. Genco and his colleagues have been pioneers in studies uncovering a role of periodontal disease in systemic disease. They demonstrated that periodontal disease will decrease glycemic control in diabetics and that periodontal therapy appears can enhance glycemic control in people with diabetes.  They also provided evidence that there is a strong association of periodontal disease with heart disease and stroke, and their studies have elucidated mechanisms which help to explain these effects.  

A cum laude graduate of the State University of New York at Buffalo School of Dentistry, Dr. Genco completed his residency in periodontics and received a Ph.D. in microbiology and immunology from the University of Pennsylvania. He is presently Distinguished Professor of the State University of New York at Buffalo’s oral biology department and of the department of microbiology in the School of Medicine and Biomedical Sciences. He is also adjunct professor of immunology at Roswell Park Cancer Institute. He directed the school’s periodontology graduate and PhD programs. Dr. Genco has published more than 350 peer-reviewed articles describing his research and has contributed to 10 books.  He holds nine patents and is a scientific director and founder of Therex, a local biotechnology company.  

Dr. Genco is active in the community and serves on the Board of Directors of the Buffalo Museum of Science, the Nichols School, and the Sunstar Foundation for Oral Health. He also serves on the Board of Directors Pneuma Pharmaceuticals, and of two venture funds, the Western New York Business Development Fund, and Excell Partners LLC.

Dr. Genco is former president of the International Association for Dental Research, and the American Association for Dental Research, and served as Editor-in-Chief of the Journal of Periodontology and Annals of Periodontology from 1988-2006. He is a member of the Institute of Medicine of the National Academy of Sciences and has served on several of its committees commissioned by the U.S. Government to study major health care issues such as Medicare coverage of new dental clinical advances, and barriers to clinical research. Dr. Genco has received many awards including the American Dental Association (ADA) Gold Medal for Excellence in Research, the ADA Award for Clinical Research, the UB Samuel B. Capen Alumni Award, and the SUNY Research Foundation Lifetime Achievement Award. He also received an honorary doctorate from Georgetown University.