Periodontitis and Alzheimer's Disease
This page contains all of the research-related materials I created for my Biology BS capstone. I chose to look into the relationship between periodontitis and Alzheimer's disease as I believe it matches well with my career aspirations to be a dentist.
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This annotated bibliography was one of the first times I really moved beyond just summarizing research and started thinking about how studies connect to each other. At the beginning, I was mostly focused on understanding each article individually, but as I kept working, I started noticing patterns, contradictions, and gaps in the research. Comparing ideas like inflammation versus bacteremia helped me develop my Data Literacy & Evidence Use and Critical Thinking & Synthesis in a more meaningful way.
It also pushed me to build my Biological Knowledge & Inquiry because I had to actually understand concepts like neuroinflammation and blood–brain barrier disruption in order to explain them clearly. This assignment made me more confident reading scientific articles, which used to feel overwhelming. It’s meaningful to me because it connects to my goal of becoming a dentist and helped me start seeing oral health as something that impacts the entire body, not just the mouth.
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Application is no longer available.
This literature review felt like the next step because I had to take everything I learned from the annotated bibliography and turn it into a clear, organized argument. Instead of just pointing out connections, I had to explain what those connections actually mean. This helped me grow a lot in Critical Thinking & Synthesis, especially when trying to figure out whether the research showed causation or just association.
One thing that stood out to me was how complex biological relationships are. Even when there’s strong evidence, it’s not always straightforward to apply it to real-world situations. This made me more careful in how I interpret research and more aware of things like confounding variables and study limitations. It also connects to my future career because it shows how important it is to think critically about research before applying it to patient care.
The mini manuscript was where everything really came together. Instead of only analyzing research, I had to actually apply what I learned by working with data and presenting my own results. This helped me grow in Data Literacy & Evidence Use and also in Scientific Communication, since I had to explain my findings clearly in a scientific format.
During revision, I realized how important it is to explain what results mean and connect them back to biological concepts, not just report them. I also had to think more about limitations, especially since the data was simulated, which made me more aware of how cautious you have to be when drawing conclusions.
Overall, this project made me feel more prepared to work with scientific information in a real-world setting. It’s meaningful to me because it reflects the type of thinking I’ll need as a dentist, especially when using research to make informed decisions and provide better care for patients.