Rate My Professor Sunday Akintoye

A clinician-scientist, Akintoye's research centers on basic and translational investigations into metabolic bone disorders, orofacial complications of cancer therapies, and cancer health disparities. His studies on fibrous dysplasia delineated dental features of maxillo-mandibular involvement in McCune-Albright syndrome. He explores the unique growth, lifespan, and regenerative properties of human orofacial bone mesenchymal stem cells compared to non-oral sites, their modulatory roles in jaw osteonecrosis pathogenesis, and potential for therapeutic grafting in maxillofacial defects. Akintoye also addresses racial disparities in odontogenic neoplasms, particularly ameloblastoma recurrence. His work has garnered funding from the National Institutes of Health (National Cancer Institute, National Institute of Dental and Craniofacial Research, National Institute on Aging), American Cancer Society, University of Pennsylvania Research Foundation, Penn Center for Musculoskeletal Disorders, and Penn Institute for Regenerative Medicine. Featured in National Cancer Institute and National Institute of Dental and Craniofacial Research spotlights, he served as a Fulbright Scholar at the University of Lagos Faculty of Dental Sciences in 2015/2016, teaching research methodologies and mentoring faculty and students. Awards include the Herschfus Memorial Award (2018), Joseph and Josephine Rabinowitz Awards for Research Excellence (2004, 2017), and Lester William Burket Research Award (2002). Akintoye chairs committees for the American Academy of Oral Medicine, serves on its Board of Trustees since 2011, and holds editorial roles as Associate Editor for Oral Diseases (2014-present), among others.