Oral Care, Health Innovations and Designs Singapore - (ORCHIDS):
An Autonomous Research Centre to Transform Health and Life

The Faculty of Dentistry, National University of Singapore (NUS) has officially launched ORCHIDS (Oral Care, Health Innovations and Designs Singapore), an autonomous research centre that will significantly support the research mission for the development of new concepts and technologies in dentistry that have in-human applications.

ORCHIDS was established with a well-balanced team of basic and clinician scientists. This team coordinates world-class research programmes in the fields of microbiology, nanomaterials, regenerative medicine, 3D printing technologies, and health devices.

According to the Director of ORCHIDS, Associate Professor Vinicius Rosa, “The Faculty is renowned for the high quality of its research. Today, the proportion of publications in top-tier journals is one of the highest among dental schools in the world. Likewise, our papers receive two times more citations than the global average, which is a hallmark of our impact. With ORCHIDS, we will boost our research programmes, catalyse our impact and enhance clinical translation potential”.

ORCHIDS focuses on the development of innovative and versatile platforms that will merge biology with computational power to improve oral and systemic health. We will harness the power of artificial intelligence to bioengineer symbiotic biofilms for the improvement of oral health. This will eventually impact systemic health through the use of strong computational power for the development of advanced nanomaterials, biochips, 3D- and 4D-printed technologies, and regenerative therapies for personalised care.

The ORCHIDS research agenda is based on the following guiding principles:

• Enable research capabilities for high quality and impactful translational science in innovative fields;

• Foster fruitful research collaborations and attract world class researchers whose research backgrounds are aligned with NUS Dentistry’s research strategies and national priorities; and

• Provide a vibrant research environment and proactive mentorship and care for the development of future generations of clinician researchers and scholars.

The ORCHIDS' roadmap is poised to be a pillar of Oral Health-Engineering collaboration on a global scale. Leveraging our demonstrated track record of creating new concepts, innovative technologies and our synergy with Professor Dean Ho, we will develop a forward-looking platform that will give a rapid boost to NUS and the National University Health System. This will help to advance innovation of oral health in Singapore and strengthen the country’s positioning as the location of choice for the development of novel oral and personal care, biofabrication and pharmaceutical therapies in Asia.