Translational Psychoneuroimmunology in Oral Biology and Medicine

As we celebrate our teacher, our mentor, our friend, Professor John L. Fahey (1924−2014), emeritus professor in the Departments of Microbiology, Immunology and Molecular Genetics and of Medicine at UCLA (1971−2014), it is clear that we all have a personal story that intersects and intertwines with the greater history of the contribution to science and to our own individual growth as scientists proffered by this brilliant academician. To be clear, Dr. Fahey was a man of superlative firm kindness, of unwavering dedication to the growth and fulfillment of his students and trainees, and of deep and patient respect for each of our deep-seated interests. His body of work is also, undoubtedly, an immeasurable contribution to the fundamental science of basic and clinical immunology. Professor Fahey was many years ahead of everyone in his field, and in allied fields of his interest such as psychoneuroimmunology. Indeed, he was one of the four founding members of the Cousins Center for Psychoneuroimmunology at UCLA in the mid- to late 1980s. It is in the latter context, perhaps, that he excelled in the flexibility of his creative mind by helping foster, at UCLA, an environment where the study of the immune system could be carried out beyond the limits of traditional scientific areas. Accordingly, he molded the minds of many of his students and mentees. To be sure, I was most fortunate to be among them during my three years' dual postdoctoral fellowships in his research group (UCLA Program in Psychoneuroimmunology, 1987−1990; NIH: Fundamental and Clinical Immunology, 1988−1990).