Professor Junji Tagami

Professor Junji Tagami graduated from Tokyo Medical and Dental University (TMDU), achieving his DDS in 1980 and his PhD in 1984 mentored by Prof. Takao Fusayama and Prof. Hiroyasu Hosoda.  In 1987 and 1988, he stayed and performed research with Prof. David Pashley.  He was appointed to the Professor and Chair of Cariology and Operative Dentistry, Graduate School at TMDU in 1995.  He is the Professor Emeritus after his retirement in 2021.  He is a Professor Emeritus at TMDU, and a Visiting Professor at the Faculty of Dentistry, Chulalongkorn University.  He continues clinical, academic and educational activities as the director of Aoyama Quartz Dental Clinic.  

He is a prolific author who has contributed more than 500 papers to peer-reviewed international journals and some 200 papers to Japanese academic journals in the fields of cariology, tooth-colored dental restorative systems, the bonding of materials to dental tissues. His research on the mechanism and structure of caries and dentin and enamel bonding are believed to be the most important background for achieving minimally invasive dentistry utilising adhesive materials.  His research in the field of adhesive dentistry such as evaluation of bonding performances, bonding mechanisms, microstructure of the bond interface, contributed greatly to the development and improvement of the adhesive resin materials.  The development of the Optical Coherent Tomography (OCT) for dental diagnosis and application for laboratory material testing is one of his outstanding achievements in the recent years.  

Because of his contribution in dental research and education, he was awarded Honorary Degrees from King’s College of London and Mihidol University in Thailand, the distinguished scientist award, Wilmer Souder Award, from IADR, and The President’s Award of Japanese Association of Dental Science.