The Forsyth Institute

Our vision is to improve oral health through biological research and public health outreach. Our efforts are grounded in three interconnected pillars to support this vision into the future. These pillars are:
1) Biological Research: The best oral health research institute in the world
2) Public Health Outreach: The global leader in children’s oral health
3) Technological Innovation: The accelerator for cutting edge, high impact oral technology innovation

Our programs include:
1) Biological Research

a. Provide an environment conducive to faculty engagement and mentoring of junior faculty
b. Recruit high-quality new investigators
c. Support scientific staff with resources they need to win high-impact grants

2) Public Health Outreach

a. Elevate the ForsythKids program through research and innovation
b. Expand global presence, especially in China, through improved partnerships
c. Increase and expand services offered by our Forsyth Faculty Associates dental practice

3) Technological Innovation

a. Enhance industry partnerships for more extensive clinical trials
b. Develop a Venture Capital (VC) Fund for technology innovation in oral health
c. Improve capabilities for researchers to establish start-up companies

1) Biological Research: Forsyth is a top-tier institution in terms of funding from the National Institutes of Health. Our global reputation allows us to continue to attract top researchers from around the world. Forsyth has also recently funded a round of large pilot grants to help scientists gather the preliminary data necessary to further their research. This data is also essential to submit larger federal and foundation grant applications to continue their work.
a. Forsyth Student Scholars: This summer internship program exposes high school students to the exciting and rewarding world of scientific research. Created in 1993, the program allows students to work side-by-side in the laboratory with our scientists who are engaged in cutting-edge research. The program provides students with hands-on experience and the chance to contribute to actual research projects.
2) Public Health Outreach: Our ForsythKids Mobile Dental Program currently offers oral health care at 70 sites throughout Massachusetts. We treat children where they live and learn to overcome barriers to care. Our staff of dentists, hygienists, and dental assistants can put two vans on the road and set up a functioning dental office in any space, including a school, gymnasium, library, or resource room.

The Forsyth Institute is also introducing a 21st Century Innovative Oral Health Management Program (21C). We envision a cradle to college oral and craniofacial program that combines evidence-based practices with cutting-edge technology. Led by our CEO and staff members experienced working in China, Forsyth continues to explore new opportunities in that country.

Also, our Forsyth Faculty Associates program provides the highest quality dental care available in the Greater Boston Area.

3) Technological Innovation: As a leader in oral microbiome research, Forsyth seeks to utilize this expertise by creating Forsyth Microbiome Inc. The company intends to build on our Human Oral Microbiome Database (HOMD), the world’s largest curated database of the bacterial species in the human aerodigestive tract.
Forsyth’s Clinical and Translational Research Center has a long history of producing quality integrated research. Our staff includes internationally renowned scientists and clinicians with expertise in a variety of oral health-related fields.

1) Biological Research: The Forsyth Institute has been chosen to participate in the Surgeon General’s new report on Oral Health. The report seeks to document progress in the area since the last report in 2000. Dr. Wenyuan Shi, our CEO and Chief Scientific Officer is an Associate Section Editor for Emerging Technologies for this document.

Our scientists have received support from a variety of federal, foundation, and corporate sources and have published consistently in high-impact scientific journals. Through our Center for Clinical and Translational Research, we have greatly industry partnerships in 2020. The Institute has also begun an annual Symposium Series focusing on different areas of research.
For the general public, we continue to participate in the Cambridge Science Festival, a celebration showcasing cutting edge STEM technology.

a. Forsyth Student Scholars: The program works to overcome barriers that students in some communities may face in accessing STEM education and career information. This year we accepted 16 scholars from a pool of more than 100 applications.

b. Forsyth Remote Science Camps


2) Public Health Outreach: The ForsythKids program will treat almost 3,000 children this year; a 20 percent increase from the previous year. Over 90 percent of the children we serve live in poverty. The program works in Boston, Cambridge, Chelsea, Fitchburg, Holyoke, Hull, Lynn, Randolph, and Somerville. This year, we are pleased to add the Waltham Public Schools to our service area. Please see our program video for more information, https://www.forsyth.org/blog/full-video-every-child-deserves-smile#.XXqN_ChKiM8.


3) Technological Innovation: Our accomplishments here include:
• The creation of a new company, Forsyth Microbiome, Inc., to take advantage of research leaderships in the oral microbiome field.
• Advancing discussions on the creation of an independent Forsyth Technology Fund to support faculty and industry innovation by funding new start-ups in oral health technology
• Planning for the Forsyth Technology Forum to focus on new innovative products in oral health
• A comprehensive examination of our current research to determine potential new opportunities and partnerships in this area