Published December 9, 2021
Dear University Community:
We are pleased to announce that Dr. Stefan Ruhl, DDS, PhD, professor and associate chair in the Department of Oral Biology, will serve as interim dean of the School of Dental Medicine, effective January 6, 2022.
A fellow of the American Association for the Advancement of Science, Dr. Ruhl is an internationally renowned expert on saliva, oral bacteria and the oral microbiome. A highly prolific scholar, his groundbreaking research seeks to unravel the roles that saliva and microorganisms play in health, including in adhesion to the teeth and surfaces of the mouth, defense against pathogens and colonization of the oral cavity. Dr. Ruhl was among the first researchers to catalogue the human salivary proteome, the entirety of proteins present in saliva and salivary gland ductal secretions. He is the former president of the International Association for Dental Research (IADR) Salivary Research Group. The IADR recognized Dr. Ruhl with the Distinguished Scientist Award in Salivary Research in 2020 and the Salivary Researcher of the Year Award in 2014.
Dr. Ruhl joined UB in 2007 from the University of Regensburg, Germany, where he was a professor of operative dentistry and periodontology. In addition to his current associate chair role, Dr. Ruhl is the director of the Advanced Training in Oral Biology program and he previously served as acting chair of the Department of Oral Biology from 2019-20.
Dr. Ruhl succeeds Dean Joseph Zambon, who is retiring from the University at Buffalo.
We are grateful to Dr. Ruhl for his leadership and service during this transitional period, during which time we will launch an international search for the next dean of the School of Dental Medicine.
Sincerely,
A. Scott Weber
Provost and Executive Vice President for Academic Affairs
Allison Brashear, MD, MBA
Vice President for Health Sciences and Dean, Jacobs School of Medicine and Biomedical Sciences