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Educational and Professional Background
Dr. Ting received the Doctorate of Dental Medicine degree from Harvard University, School of Dental Medicine. He then completed his postdoctoral orthodontic residency and also received the Doctorate of Medical Sciences from Harvard. Currently, he is an Endowed Full Professor and the Chair of the Orthodontics Department at UCLA. He is also an attending in the Craniofacial Anomalies Clinic at UCLA Medical Center.
Research/Creative Activities
My research interest is in the molecular genetics of craniofacial development. My current project is to understand the underlying etiopathology of craniosynostosis. Craniosynostosis denotes the premature fusion of cranial sutures. Approximately one in 3,000 human infants are both with craniosynostosis. Craniosynostosis can be sporadic with isolated anomalies directly related to the premature fusion of various sutures or can be familial associated with other malformations. Both genetic defects and environmental disturbances may be responsible for it. The hypothesis is that there is an altered gene expression within the abnormally fusing suture site which causes the unregulated unilateral closure of coronal suture. This difference in gene expression is not yet known or proven because it is extremely difficult to be detected with conventional research methods. In order to test our hypothesis, we intend to isolate and identify the genes that are expressed differentially in the normal and premature suture closure and investigation into their role in craniofacial growth and development.
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