Texas A&M University College of Dentistry
Headshot photo of Dr. Basak Ayaz.

Basak Ayaz, PhD, MS

Research Assistant Professor Department of Biomedical Sciences | College of Dentistry
Contact Groups and Affiliations

Biography

Career History
October 2025- Present: Research Assistant Professor, Department of Biomedical Sciences, Texas A&M College of Dentistry, U.S.A.

January 2023- September 2025: Research Assistant Scientist, Department of Oral and Maxillofacial Surgery, University of Florida, College of Dentistry

April 2020- January 2023: Post-doctoral Associate, Department of Oral and Maxillofacial Surgery, University of Florida, College of Dentistry

September 2019- April 2020: Post-doctoral Associate, Department of Physiological Sciences, University of Florida, College of Veterinary Medicine

January 2018- January 2019: Visiting Research Scholar, Department of Physiological Sciences, University of Florida, College of Veterinary Medicine

September 2014- July 2019: Research Assistant, Department of Medical Pharmacology, Eskisehir Osmangazi University, College of Medicine

Education

  • Ph.D. in Pharmacology Department of Medical Pharmacology, Eskisehir Osmangazi University, Faculty of Medicine, Turkey
  • MSc. in Clinical Pharmacology Department of Medical Pharmacology, Marmara University, Turkey
  • BSc. in Biology Istanbul University, Turkey

Research Interests

  • Dr. Ayaz works in Dr. Neubert’s laboratory on novel non-opioid therapies for pain control. Additionally, Dr. Ayaz has been working to develop an independent research program focusing on the role of hypertension on pain.

Awards & Honors

  • Travel Grant 12th Congress of the European Association for Clinical Pharmacology and Therapeutics, 2015
  • 2214/A Scholarship Program for Ph.D. Students Award (Health Sciences Section) Scientific and Technological Research Council of Turkey (TUBITAK), 2017
  • APS-Cardiovascular Section Research Recognition Awardee American Physiological Society, 2019
  • Top 25 Abstract Recognition ASPN Annual Conference, 2021
  • Nomination for Full Membership Sigma Xi, 2025

Publications

2025 Investigating mechanically activated currents from trigeminal neurons of nonhuman primates

Lindquist KA, Mecklenburg JM, Hovhannisyan AH, Ruparel; RE-JOIN Consortium Investigators; Akopian AN. Investigating mechanically activated currents from trigeminal neurons of nonhuman primates. eNeuro 2025:12;12(5):ENEURO.0054-25.2025.

2024 Clinical and biobehavioral phenotypic assessments and data harmonization for the RE-JOIN research consortium: Recommendations for common data element selection

Cruz-Almeida Y, Mehta B, Haelterman NA, Johnson AJ, Heiting C, Ernberg M, Orange D, Lotz M, Boccanfuso J, Smith SB, Pela M, Boline J, Otero M, Allen K, Perez D, Donnelly C, Almarza A, Olmer M, Balkhi H, Wagenaar J, Martone M; RE-JOIN Consortium Investigators. Clinical and biobehavioral phenotypic assessments and data harmonization for the RE-JOIN research consortium: Recommendations for common data element selection. Neurobiol Pain 2024:16:100163.

2024 Protocol for optical, aqueous-based clearing of murine tissues using EZ Clear
Ahn T, Largoza GE, Younis J; RE-JOIN Consortium; Dickinson ME, Hsu CW, Wythe JD. Protocol for optical, aqueous-based clearing of murine tissues using EZ Clear. STAR Protoc 2024;5(2):103053.
2024 Trigeminal somatosensation in the temporomandibular joint and associated disorders
Perry SK, Emrick JJ, RE-JOIN Consortium. Trigeminal somatosensation in the temporomandibular joint and associated disorders. Front Pain Res (Lausanne) 2024;5: 1374929.
2023 Locus coeruleus-noradrenergic modulation of trigeminal pain: Implications for trigeminal neuralgia and psychiatric comorbidities

Donertas-Ayaz B, Caudle RM. Locus coeruleus-noradrenergic modulation of trigeminal pain: Implications for trigeminal neuralgia and psychiatric comorbidities. Neurobiol Pain 2023;13:100124. Review