Kyounga “Cecilia” Cheon, DMD, MS, associate professor in the UAB Department of Pediatric Dentistry and director of the Finn Pediatric Dentistry Clinic at the UAB School of Dentistry, has been selected as a 2025 recipient of the Blazer Bridge Fund, an initiative of the Bill L. Harbert Institute for Innovation and Entrepreneurship. The fund supports early-stage innovations with strong potential for commercialization and clinical impact, and this year awarded $450,000 across nine projects chosen from 41 applications representing 98 inventors in 45 departments.

Cheon’s project, developed in collaboration with Ho-Wook Jun, Ph.D., of the UAB Department of Biomedical Engineering, centers on the Triosteo Matrix – an advanced scaffold designed to stimulate natural bone healing and regeneration. Minimally invasive, injectable, and adaptable, the matrix holds promise for treating craniofacial trauma, congenital defects, and orthopedic conditions. If successful, it could emerge as a next-generation therapeutic platform that improves outcomes, reduces costs, and accelerates the translation of UAB discoveries into patient care.

The award builds on Cheon’s growing portfolio of translational research, including a recent NIH R21 grant to develop bioactive pulp-capping materials that promote healing and preserve dental tissue vitality. Her interdisciplinary work bridges dentistry, biomedical engineering, immunology, and Entrepreneurship, and  attracting support from federal and state agencies, as well as industry partners.

Cheon is a scientist in the Global Center for Craniofacial, Oral, and Dental Disorders (GC-CODED), the Center for Clinical and Translational Science (CCTS), and the Comprehensive Arthritis, Musculoskeletal, Bone and Autoimmunity Center (CAMBAC). She was selected for the 2023-2024 cohort of UAB’s IGNITE Program, which cultivates leadership and innovation among faculty researchers.

The Blazer Bridge Fund was launched in 2023 and has now invested in 21 projects totaling $900,000.