Dr Melissa Grant

Supervisor Details

Contact Details

School of Dentistry, University of Birmingham

Scientific Background

Research Interests

Melissa Grant’s research centres the protein players associated with oral disease. She is interested in exploring novel panels of biomarkers to detect chronic inflammatory disease, such as periodontitis, Rheumatoid Arthritis, chronic kidney disease and lung disease; the structure and function of proteins in the mouth and in circulation under these various conditions; the detection of these proteins by point of care tests; and the production of these proteins in cell models are of particular interest.

Current PhD students are examining novel ways to detect protein biomarkers in saliva, discovery of biomarkers for oral blisters from different diseases, blister fluid composition from patients with epidemolysis bullosa and biomarkers for heart health in captive great apes.

Research Groups

Periodontal Research Group (PRG)

Supervision Style

In three words or phrases: I see myself as student centred and supportive in my style of supervision, I expect to talk with students working with me and to encourage them to work with me in exploring the potential routes through their PhD.

Provision of Training

I prefer to take responsibility for student technical training at first, leading to more independence later. Where the expertise is outside my own I will help to find others, who can help reach the level of training needed.

Progression Monitoring and Management

I like to be kept up to date, and will expect to see evidence of method development/data generation results on a daily/weekly basis.

Communication

The team has a WhatsApp group chat with which we regularly communicate during the week. I may email out of hours; however, I will not expect you to do the same. Whilst I expect you to keep up with my/ team communications I will expect you to manage your work/life balance. I am happy to discuss any issues that are impacting your ability to fulfil your potential or expectations.

In a group meeting

At least once per week

In year 1 of PhD study

At least once per week

In year 2 of PhD study

At least once per week

In year 3 of PhD study

At least once per week

The meetings will be face to face and I am usually contactable for an instant response 3 or 4 days a week.

Working Pattern

The timing of work in my lab is completely flexible, and (other than attending pre-arranged meetings), I expect students to manage their own time.

Notice Period for Feedback

I need at least 1 week’s notice to provide feedback on written work of up to 5000 words.

MIBTP Project Details

Current Projects (2025-26)

Primary supervisor for:

The association of periodontal health with mental health, stress, and resilience

See the PhD Opportunities section to see if this project is currently open for applications via MIBTP.

Please Note: The main page lists projects via BBSRC Research Theme(s) quoted and then relevant Topic(s).

The association of periodontal health with mental health, stress, and resilience

Secondary Supervisor(s): Dr Renate Reniers

University of Registration: University of Birmingham

BBSRC Research Themes: Understanding the Rules of Life (Neuroscience and Behaviour)

Project Outline

The mouth is a complex niche in the body: it is inhabited by many microbes and regularly surveyed by the immune system. The microbes accumulate on the teeth and are removed by regular tooth brushing. If not removed effectively they can cause inflammation in the mouth. The simplest form is called gingivitis and affects many people on a day-to-day basis. The effects of gingivitis are easily reversed by reinstatement of regular cleaning. If microbes are left in the mouth for a long period of time there is the risk that the inflammation will become more long term and cause irreversible damage, such as loss of bone and eventually lead to tooth loss. This is called periodontitis. In its severest form periodontitis is a problem for 10% of the global population, however, in over 65-year-olds periodontitis of any form affects 50% of people and so is one of the most common diseases of humans. We have recently developed a saliva test to detect inflammation (either gingivitis or periodontitis) in saliva by measuring a small number of proteins (Grant et al., 2022).

Extensive research has shown that brain inflammation is connected to mental illnesses such as mood disorders and psychosis (e.g. Lalousis et al., 2023). What poses an interesting question is if there is also a connection between inflammation detected in saliva and mental health, stress, and resilience. Research in this area is lacking and this project offers the exciting opportunity to investigate the association between inflammation detected in saliva and self-reported measures of oral health, mental health, stress, and resilience.

References

Grant MM, Taylor JJ, Jaedicke K, Creese A, Gowland C, Burke B, Doudin K, Patel U, Weston P, Milward M, Bissett SM, Cooper HJ, Kooijman G, Rmaile A, de Jager M, Preshaw PM, Chapple ILC. Discovery, validation, and diagnostic ability of multiple protein-based biomarkers in saliva and gingival crevicular fluid to distinguish between health and periodontal diseases. J Clin Periodontol. 2022 Jul;49(7):622-632. doi: 10.1111/jcpe.13630. Epub 2022 Apr 29. PMID: 35451104; PMCID: PMC9324935.

Alexandros Lalousis P, Schmaal L, Wood SJ, Reniers RLEP, Cropley VL, Watson A, Pantelis C, Suckling J, Barnes NM, Pariante C, Jones PB, Joyce E, Barnes TRE, Lawrie SM, Husain N, Dazzan P, Deakin B, Shannon Weickert C, Upthegrove R. Inflammatory subgroups of schizophrenia and their association with brain structure: A semi-supervised machine learning examination of heterogeneity. Brain Behav Immun. 2023 Oct;113:166-175. doi: 10.1016/j.bbi.2023.06.023. Epub 2023 Jul 7. PMID: 37423513.