Faculty

Dr. Angelo Mariotti graduated from Grove City College with a B.S. in biology and education and matriculated to West Virginia University where he received his Ph.D. in Pharmacology & Toxicology and a D.D.S.  Following specialty training in periodontology from Virginia Commonwealth University, he became a faculty member in the Department of Periodontology and Pharmacology & Therapeutics at the University of Florida.  While at the University of Florida, he was appointed to and served as the Director of the Postgraduate Program in Periodontology and became a Diplomate of the American Board of Periodontology.  In 1996, he accepted a faculty position in the College of Dentistry at The Ohio State University where he is professor and Chair of the Division of Periodontology.  He currently serves as the President of the Columbus Dental Society, as a member of the Council of Access to Care and Public Service of the Ohio Dental Association, as a consultant for the Council of Scientific Affairs for the America Dental Association, on the Advisory Board for the Journal of Periodontology and Clinical Advances in Periodontics, as an examiner for the American Board of Periodontology, and as an editor of Pharmacology and Therapeutics for Dentistry. As an endocrine pharmacologist, his scientific interests revolve around the actions and interactions of sex steroid hormones on cellular proliferation and growth in sex accessory tissues and the oral cavity and he also has a major interest in issues related to dental health care economics.  In addition to his research and teaching, Dr. Mariotti maintains an active private practice in periodontology in The Ohio State Dental Faculty Practice Association, is a Fellow of the International College of Dentists and is listed as one of the Best Dentists in America (Woodward/White, Inc., publisher). 

Dr. Tatakis was born and raised in Athens, Greece. He began his career as a dental student at the National and Capodistrian University of Athens, School of Dentistry, from which he received his dental degree in 1982 . He then attended and graduated in 1990 from the State University of New York at Buffalo, School of Dental Medicine, with a Certificate in Periodontics and a PhD in Oral Biology (Cell Biology). Dr. Tatakis then served as faculty at the University of Louisville School of Dentistry. From 1994 to 2001, he was a full time faculty in the Advanced Education Program in Periodontics and Implant Surgery at the Loma Linda University School of Dentistry. In 2001, he was appointed as a full time faculty member in the Division of Periodontology at The Ohio State University, where he is Professor and Director of the Postdoctoral Program. Dr. Tatakis is a Diplomate of the American Board of Periodontology, serves as an Editor for the International Journal of Dentistry and Section Editor for Up-to-Date, serves on the Editorial Board of the Journal of Clinical Periodontology and is a member of the Research Submissions Committee of the American Academy of Periodontology. In 2004, Dr. Tatakis and his co-authors received the inaugural E. Bud Tarrson Research Award in Oral Plastic Surgery from the American Academy of Periodontology Foundation. His research interests include: pathogenesis of gingivitis and periodontitis (alveolar bone loss); and periodontal plastic and regenerative surgical therapy.

Dr. Chien was born and raised in Taiwan. He obtained his dental degree from China Medical University, Taiwan in 1986. He then attended the State University of New York at Buffalo, School of Dental Medicine from 1990 to 1997, where he received his PhD in Oral Biology and Certificate in Periodontics. Dr. Chien moved back to his native country, Taiwan, in November 1997 and served as a full time faculty at the China Medical University. In 2001, he was appointed as the Dean in the School of Dentistry at China Medical University. He accepted a faculty position in the College of Dentistry at The Ohio State University, where he works as a clinical associate professor for the Division of Periodontology. Dr. Chien’s scientific interests include periodontal regeneration, implant dentistry and the effects of the herbal mouthrinse on gingival angiogenesis.

Dr. Walters was born in Salisbury, NC and currently resides in Marion, OH.  His received his undergraduate and dental training at the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill (in 1977 and 1981, respectively).  Dr. Walters completed his specialty training at Harvard University, where he received a Master of Medical Science in Oral Biology and Certificate in Periodontology in 1984.  Immediately afterward, he moved to Ohio and was appointed as a full time faculty member in the Division of Periodontology.  Dr. Walters’ scientific interests include inflammation, signaling mechanisms involved in activation of polymorphonuclear leukocytes (PMNs), PMN chemotactic receptor polymorphisms and their association with aggressive periodontitis, mechanisms for enhancing chemotherapy against invasive bacterial pathogens, and factors that influence the distribution of antimicrobial and anti-inflammatory agents in periodontal tissues.  He is currently co-director of the program for Comprehensive Training in Oral and Craniofacial Sciences (CTOC) at Ohio State.

Dr. Binnaz Leblebicioglu was born in Antwerp, Belgium.  She obtained her dental degree from Istanbul University, Turkey in 1989.  Following her graduation, she received a scholarship for graduate education abroad from the Turkish Educational Ministry and started her periodontology training at OSU.  She completed the program and received both her Certificate and M.S. degree in 1993.  She started her PhD education in the Division of Oral Biology, OSU within the same year.  During her graduate school years, she worked as an adjunct teacher and research assistant in both the Periodontology and Oral Biology Divisions.  She completed her PhD in 1998. Following her graduation, she became an assistant professor at Case Western Reserve University in Cleveland, Ohio and taught Periodontology during the 1998-1999 academic year.  She moved back to her native country, Turkey, in June 1999 and worked as an assistant professor for the Department of Oral Implantology at Istanbul University.  She accepted a position and returned to OSU in 2003, and became a Diplomate of the American Board of Periodontology in 2006.  Dr. Leblebicioglu’s research interest can be summarized as “signal transduction involved in periodontal/peri-implant pathogenesis and wound healing”.

Dr. Kumar received her Bachelor of Dental Surgery (B.D.S.) degree from Annamalai University, India in 1987 and completed a residency in Periodontology from University of Madras, Chennai, India in 1991. Following her training, she practiced in India and the United Arab Emirates before pursuing further training in the United States. She subsequently obtained a Certificate in Periodontology and a Ph.D. in Oral Biology from The Ohio State University in 2005, and joined the division as an Assistant Professor in 2006. Dr. Kumar was the recipient of the prestigious Orban Award that is conferred by the American Association of Periodontology and has been awarded the Hayes Award at The Ohio State University for her research on identification of potential periodontal pathogens and candidate beneficial species using 16S clonal analysis. She is a Diplomate of the American Board of Periodontology.