Align Technology Awards Funding to Universities Worldwide to Advance Orthodontic and Dental Research

$250,000 in Research Grants Awarded as Part of Annual Research Awards Program

TEMPE, Ariz., June 02, 2021 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) — Align Technology, Inc. (Nasdaq: ALGN) a leading global medical device company that designs, manufactures, and sells the Invisalign system of clear aligners, iTero intraoral scanners, and exocad CAD/CAM software for digital orthodontics and restorative dentistry, today announced the award of ten research grants under the company’s eleventh Annual Research Award Program.

The global interest in research to advance dental and orthodontic treatments continues to grow as evidenced by the increasing number of applications Align Technology receives each year from universities around the world. Since the program’s inception in 2010, Align has funded over $2.0 million in research awards that have led to advancements in digital orthodontics and digital dentistry.

“We are proud to support scientific research to further advance the study of dentistry and orthodontics, and congratulate this year’s group of research award winners,” said Dr. Mitra Derakhshan, vice president – Global Clinical, Align Technology. “These studies focus on work that can contribute to improvements in oral health care and orthodontic movement, and support Align’s purpose of transforming smiles and changing lives.”

The Americas research award recipients for 2021 are:

• University of British Columbia (Vancouver, Canada) – Primary Investigator, Dr. Edwin H.K. Yen
• University of Toronto (Toronto, Canada) – Primary Investigator, Dr. Anuradha Prakki
• University of Toronto (Toronto, Canada) – Primary Investigator, Dr. Céline Lévesque
• University at Buffalo (Buffalo, New York) – Primary Investigator, Dr. Pramod Philip

The European research award recipients for 2021 are:

• The Hebrew University and Hadassah (Jerusalem, Israel) – Dr. Omer Fleissig
• National and Kapodistrian University of Athens (Athens, Greece) – Primary Investigator, Dr. Iosif Sifakakis
• University of Rome “Tor Vergata” (Rome, Italy) – Primary Investigator, Dr. Roberta Lione
• Gothenburg University (Gothenburg, Sweden) – Primary Investigator, Anna Westerlund        

The Asia Pacific research award recipients for 2021 are:

• Anhui Medical University (Hefei, China) – Primary Investigator, Dr. Xu Jianguang
• Kunming Medical University (Yunnan, China) – Primary Investigator, Dr. Jiangtian Hu

The funded research studies cover a wide range of topics for projects seeking to better understand treatment in orthodontics and dentistry including, but not limited to:

• Comparing the clinical performance of the index test in detecting supragingival interproximal caries
• Investigating remineralizing properties of polyaspartic acid attached to a resin infiltrant
• Evaluating the effects of mesenchymal stem cells transfer to periodontal ligament on the rate of orthodontic tooth movement
• Role of adaptive immunity and B-cells in orthodontic tooth movement
• Determining the effect of probiotics on oral health
• Examining the effect of Class II elastics on the vertical dimension
• Prevention and progression of caries with the addition of an active agent in aligners
• Comparing the effectiveness of Invisalign mandibular advancement with incremental advancements versus single advancement
• Demonstrating Invisalign® First treatment is effective in treating anterior crossbite

All award applications received were first reviewed and prioritized in a blind evaluation by an independent academic committee. The final recipients were then determined by Align Technology.

About Align Technology, Inc.

Align Technology designs, manufactures and offers the Invisalign system, the most advanced clear aligner system in the world, iTero intraoral scanners and services, and exocad CAD/CAM software. These technology building blocks enable enhanced digital orthodontic and restorative workflows to improve patient outcomes and practice efficiencies for over 200 thousand doctor customers and is key to accessing Align’s 500 million consumer market opportunity worldwide. Align has helped doctors treat over 10.2 million patients with the Invisalign system and is driving the evolution in digital dentistry through the Align Digital Platform, our integrated suite of unique, proprietary technologies and services delivered as a seamless, end-to-end solution for patients and consumers, orthodontists and GP dentists, and lab/partners. Visit www.aligntech.com for more information.

For additional information about the Invisalign system or to find an Invisalign doctor in your area, please visit www.invisalign.com. For additional information about iTero digital scanning system, please visit www.itero.com. For additional information about exocad dental CAD/CAM offerings and a list of exocad reseller partners, please visit http://www.exocad.com.