Jennifer Webster-Cyriaque facts for kids

Quick facts for kids Jennifer Webster-Cyriaque
Webster-Cyriaque in 2020
Alma mater	University at Buffalo University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill
Scientific career
Fields	Oral microbiome, immunology, HIV
Institutions	University of North Carolina National Institute of Dental and Craniofacial Research
Thesis	The role of Epstein-Barr virus in hairy leukoplakia and other AIDS associated oral mucosal lesions (1998)
Doctoral advisor	Nancy Raab-Traub

Jennifer Y. Webster-Cyriaque is an American dentist and a scientist who studies the body's defense system (an immunologist). She focuses on the tiny living things in our mouths, how salivary gland disease affects people with HIV, and viruses that can cause cancer.

In November 2020, she became a top leader at the National Institute of Dental and Craniofacial Research. Before that, Dr. Webster-Cyriaque worked as a professor at the UNC Adams School of Dentistry and the UNC School of Medicine for 21 years.

Learning and Degrees

Jennifer Webster-Cyriaque finished her first university degree in biology and social science in 1988. She then earned her dental degree (D.D.S.) from the University at Buffalo in 1992.

In 1998, she received her doctorate (Ph.D.) in microbiology and immunology from the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill (UNC). Her main research project was about how a virus called Epstein–Barr virus might cause mouth sores in people with AIDS. Her professor for this research was Nancy Raab-Traub.

Her Work and Career

Dr. Webster-Cyriaque taught at the UNC Adams School of Dentistry and the UNC School of Medicine for more than twenty years. She was a full professor at UNC, which means she was a highly respected teacher and researcher.

She helped out at the UNC Hospital’s dental clinic. She also researched why some people with HIV get a certain salivary gland disease. Dr. Webster-Cyriaque also studied how the tiny living things in our mouths (the oral microbiome) affect viruses that can cause cancer. She looked at how these tiny living things impact the mouth health of people with HIV.

The "UNC Malawi project" is based at Kamuzu Central Hospital

In 2004, Dr. Webster-Cyriaque started leading the "UNC Malawi project." This project is a team-up between the Malawi Ministry of Health and UNC. It helps improve health in Malawi and is based at the Kamuzu Central Hospital in Malawi's capital city. Dr. Webster-Cyriaque helped create Malawi’s first dental school, which opened in 2019.

She has also held important roles in other groups. She was a leader for the Oral HIV/AIDS Research Alliance. She was also the research director for the National Dental Association Foundation. Dr. Webster-Cyriaque is an active member of the American Association for Dental, Oral, and Craniofacial Research. She is also part of the International Association for Dental Research.

During the COVID-19 pandemic in March 2020, Dr. Webster-Cyriaque was involved in research at the UNC Adams School of Dentistry to see if mouthwash could stop the Covid-19 virus. Later that year, she became the deputy director of the National Institute of Dental and Craniofacial Research.

In 2022, Dr. Webster-Cyriaque received a special award from the International Association for Dental Research. This award recognized her important research in oral pathology and medicine. In the same year, she was chosen to be part of the National Academy of Medicine. This honor was for her major discoveries about how viruses and the body interact to cause mouth diseases.