Winston Patrick Kuo, DDS, MS, DMSc
Instructor of Developmental Biology
Director, HSDM-Laboratory for Innovative Translational Technologies
Harvard School of Dental Medicine
Laboratory for Innovative Translational Technologies
188 Longwood Avenue
REB, 4th Floor, Room 406
Boston, MA 02115
Telephone: (o) (617) 432-1894 
Telephone: (l) (617) 432-5971 
FAX (617) 432-5867
Email: winston_kuo at hsdm.harvard.edu 

Laboratory for Innovative Translational Technologies

Biographical Sketch

Dr. Kuo received his BS in biology from the State University of New York at Albany and his DDS from Columbia University. He completed a two-year dental General Practice Residency program at Catholic Medical Center in Brooklyn in New York and obtained his Pediatric Dentistry specialty from the University of Southern California and Rancho Los Amigos Medical Center. His research conducted at USC and Rancho Los Amigos Medical Center in craniofacial development and malformation (cleft lip and palate) had inspired him to gain more knowledge and training in the basic sciences in order for him to contribute more scientifically. As part of his training, Dr. Kuo completed his Dental Informatics and Oral Medicine specialty and his DMSc in Oral Biology at Harvard School of Dental Medicine. As part of his informatics training he completed his Masters of Science in Medical Informatics (a concentration in Bioinformatics) from Massachusetts Institute of Technology. Dr. Kuo is currently the Director of the Laboratory of Innovative Translational Technologies at Harvard School of Dental Medicine which he established in July 2007.

Clinical / Academic / Research interests

Dr. Kuo’s research involves the application of genomic and proteomic technologies two broad areas; craniofacial development and oral cancer. Dr. Kuo’s craniofacial research focuses on roles of microRNAs in craniofacial development. Craniofacial abnormalities are some of the most common structural birth defects that are often associated with developmental disabilities, abnormalities to brain maturation, hearing loss, functional problems related to breathing, eating, and speech. Impaired cranial bone formation and remodeling can contribute to many of these craniofacial abnormalities such as Apert’s, Crouzon’s, Treacher-Collins, Pierre Robin Complex, hemifacial microsomia, etc. Great strides have been made in identifying the genetic etiologies of a number of syndromes, though the pathogenesis of the developing cranial skeletal structures still remains poorly understood. A conditional knock-out mutation in Dicer, which is involved in microRNAs processing, with several cre-LoxP lines that target various craniofacial and skeletal tissues and structures will be used to describe the overall roles for miRNAs in craniofacial development. Preliminary results demonstrate a profound yet specific intramebranous (dermal) bone phenotype. His goal is to better characterize the nature of miRNA involvement and search for specific microRNAs involved in cranial development. In addition his plans to incorporate the transcriptional activity of multiple skeletogenic markers and signaling molecules using microRNA and DNA microarrays, and of key classes of kinase-dependent pathways using kinase-protein chips. Dr. Kuo’s research in oral cancer involves the mining and analysis of data for a panel of biomarkers that will allow for the identification of molecularly premalignant lesions as well histologic dysplastic lesions that are more likely to progress to cancer. Such identification would be of great value as early detection has the greatest impact on survival for oral cancer. Accordingly, gene expression profiling of microdissected keratinocytes from biopsies containing normal mucosal tissue and invasive HNSCC will be performed to define a set of genes with marked alteration in expression in the course of carcinogenic transformation. These potential markers will then be subjected to a two-step validation process to determine their potential utility as biomarkers for two distinct phases of cancer progression.