Rate My Professor Helen Pullisaar

Helen Pullisaar is an Associate Professor in Orthodontics at the Institute of Clinical Dentistry, Faculty of Dentistry, University of Oslo, where she also serves as Department Chair of Orthodontics. She earned her Doctor of Dental Surgery (DDS) degree in 2004, became a Specialist in Periodontology in 2007, completed her PhD in 2015 from the University of Oslo with the thesis titled 'Bioinspired ceramic TiO₂ scaffolds for bone tissue engineering,' supervised by Professors Håvard J. Haugen and Janne Reseland, and Dr. Esben Østrup, and obtained her Specialist certification in Orthodontics in 2017. Her doctoral research focused on developing bioinspired ceramic titanium dioxide scaffolds coated with alginate hydrogel containing osteoinductive molecules such as simvastatin and enamel matrix derivative to promote osteogenic differentiation and bone tissue engineering. Prior to her current role, she conducted postdoctoral research in orthodontics following her PhD in the Department of Biomaterials.

Pullisaar's research specializations encompass orthodontics, tissue engineering and regeneration, periodontology, and biomaterials. She has authored numerous peer-reviewed publications in prestigious journals, contributing significantly to the field. Key works include 'Stability, survival, patient satisfaction, and cost-minimization of CAD/CAM versus conventional multistranded fixed retainers in orthodontic patients: a 2-year follow-up of a two-centre randomized controlled trial' (European Journal of Orthodontics, 2024); 'A single amino acid deletion in the ER Ca²⁺ sensor STIM1 reverses the in vitro and in vivo effects of the Stormorken syndrome-causing R304W mutation' (Science Signaling, 2023); 'Recombinant irisin enhances the extracellular matrix formation, remodeling potential, and differentiation of human periodontal ligament cells cultured in 3D' (Journal of Periodontal Research, 2023); 'Irisin reduces orthodontic tooth movement in rats by promoting the osteogenic potential in the periodontal ligament' (European Journal of Orthodontics, 2023); 'Stability, survival, and patient satisfaction with CAD/CAM versus conventional multistranded fixed retainers in orthodontic patients: a 6-month follow-up of a two-centre randomized controlled clinical trial' (European Journal of Orthodontics, 2022); and 'FNDC5/irisin is expressed and regulated differently in human periodontal ligament cells, dental pulp stem cells and osteoblasts' (Archives of Oral Biology, 2021). Her studies explore retainer stability, irisin's role in periodontal ligament cells and orthodontic tooth movement, STIM1 mutations, and biomaterial innovations for tissue regeneration. Pullisaar's work advances clinical orthodontics and regenerative dentistry through rigorous experimental and clinical trial methodologies.