Thomas H. Foster, Ph.D.

Contact Information

Faculty Appointments

Professor (Part-Time) - Department of Imaging Sciences (SMD)

Biography

Professional Background

Professor Foster received his B.S. in Physics from Stevens Institute of Technology in 1983. Following two years at the General Electric Research and Development Center where he worked on magnetic resonance imaging, he came to the University of Rochester and received the Ph.D. in Physics in 1990. He immediately joined the faculty of the University as an Assistant Professor of Radiology. He was promoted to Associate Professor in 1994 and is currently Professor of Imaging Sciences (formerly Radiology), of Physics, of Optics, and of Biomedical Engineering. From 2001 - 2008, Professor Foster was an Associate Editor of the journal Photochemistry and Photobiology. He served as a member of the National Institutes of Health Radiation Therapeutics and Biology Study Section during 2004 - 2008 and from 2005 - 2012 was appointed to the Research Program Committee of the Canadian Institute of Photonic Innovation.
Professor Foster is a Fellow of the American Physical Society, a Fellow of the American Society for Laser Medicine and Surgery, and a Senior Member of the Optical Society of America. He currently serves on the Editorial Board of Lasers in Surgery and Medicine and is a frequent ad hoc grant reviewer for the National Institutes of Health and the Oak Ridge Associated Universities.

Credentials

Education

1983
BS | Stevens Inst of Tech
Physics

1988
MA | University of Rochester
Physics

1990
PhD | University of Rochester
Physics

Awards

2013
Fellow
Sponsor: American Society for Laser Medicine & Surgery

2013
Shu-Ren Lin Award for Excellence in Resident Teaching

2013
Arvin E. Robinson Award for Excellence in Resident Education and Teaching

2012
Senior Member
Sponsor: Optical Society of America

2010
Fellow
Sponsor: American Institute for Medical and Biological Engineering

2009
University Dean's Award for Meritorious Service in PhD Defenses
Location: University of Rochester

2002
Shu-Ren Lin Award for Excellence in Radiology Teaching
Location: Department of Radiology, University of Rochester

2001
Fellow
Sponsor: American Physical Society

1991
Shu-Ren Lin Award for Excellence in Radiology Teaching
Location: Department of Radiology, University of Rochester

1987
Outstanding Graduate Student Teaching Assistant
Sponsor: Department of Physics and Astronomy, University of Rochester

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Patents

Patent Title: Ultraviolet Light for Light Activated GeneTransduction in Gene Delivery
Patent #: 1472348
Issue Date: Dec 20, 2006
Country: Europe
Invented By: Jarod C Finlay, Thomas H Foster, Regis O'Keefe, Edward M Schwarz

Patent Title: Ultraviolet Light for Light Activated GeneTransduction in Gene Delivery
Patent #: CH1472348
Issue Date: Dec 20, 2006
Country: Switzerland/Liechtenstein
Invented By: Jarod C Finlay, Thomas H Foster, Regis O'Keefe, Edward M Schwarz

Patent Title: System for Identifying, Inspecting, and Examining a Radiographically Labeled Specimen
Patent #: 9,072,430
Issue Date: Jul 07, 2015
Country: United States
Invented By: Andrew Berger, Thomas H Foster, Rebecca Wilson, James Zavislan

Patent Title: Stepper Motor Controller System and A Method Thereof
Patent #: 6,861,818
Issue Date: Mar 01, 2005
Country: United States
Invented By: David L Conover, Jarod C Finlay, Thomas H Foster

Patent Title: Photodynamic Therapy with Spatially-Resolved Dual Spectroscopic Monitoring and Related System
Patent #: GB1778076
Issue Date: Sep 02, 2009
Country: United Kingdom
Invented By: Chad E Bigelow, William J Cottrell, Thomas H Foster, Allan R Oseroff

Patent Title: Photodynamic Therapy with Spatially-Resolved Dual Spectroscopic Monitoring and Related System
Patent #: NL1778076
Issue Date: Sep 02, 2009
Country: Netherlands
Invented By: Chad E Bigelow, William J Cottrell, Thomas H Foster, Allan R Oseroff

Patent Title: Photodynamic Therapy with Spatially-Resolved Dual Spectroscopic Monitoring
Patent #: 9,044,140
Issue Date: Jun 02, 2015
Country: United States
Invented By: Chad E Bigelow, William J Cottrell, Thomas H Foster, Allan R Oseroff

Patent Title: Photodynamic Therapy with Spatially-Resolved Dual Spectroscopic Monitoring
Patent #: DE1778076
Issue Date: Sep 02, 2009
Country: Germany
Invented By: Chad E Bigelow, William J Cottrell, Thomas H Foster, Allan R Oseroff

Patent Title: Photodynamic Therapy with Spatially-Resolved Dual Spectroscopic Monitoring
Patent #: FR1778076
Issue Date: Sep 02, 2009
Country: France
Invented By: Chad E Bigelow, William J Cottrell, Thomas H Foster, Allan R Oseroff

Patent Title: Photodynamic Therapy with Spatially-Resolved Dual Spectroscopic Monitoring
Patent #: SE0778076
Issue Date: Sep 02, 2009
Country: Sweden
Invented By: Chad E Bigelow, William J Cottrell, Thomas H Foster, Allan R Oseroff

Patent Title: Photodynamic Therapy with Spatially Resolved Dual Spectroscopic Monitoring
Patent #: 1778076
Issue Date: Sep 02, 2009
Country: Europe
Invented By: Chad E Bigelow, William J Cottrell, Thomas H Foster, Allan R Oseroff

Patent Title: Method for Operating a Laser Scanning Confocal Microscope System and a System Thereof
Patent #: 6,956,647
Issue Date: Oct 18, 2005
Country: United States
Invented By: Chad E Bigelow, David L Conover, Thomas H Foster, Irene Georgakoudi, Andrey Mezhiba, Soumya Mitra

Patent Title: Method for Operating a Laser Scanning Confocal Microscope System and a System Thereof
Patent #: 6,859,273
Issue Date: Feb 22, 2005
Country: United States
Invented By: Chad E Bigelow, David L Conover, Thomas H Foster, Irene Georgakoudi, Andrey Mezhiba, Soumya Mitra

Patent Title: Light Probe for Ultraviolet Light Activated Gene Transduction
Patent #: 2004209919
Issue Date: Apr 17, 2008
Country: Australia
Invented By: Thomas H Foster, Michael Maloney, Paul T Rubery, Edward M Schwarz

Patent Title: Light Activated Gene Transduction Using Ultraviolet Light for Cell Targeted Gene Delivery
Patent #: 1867715
Issue Date: Mar 18, 2009
Country: Europe
Invented By: Jarod C Finlay, Thomas H Foster, Regis O'Keefe, Edward M Schwarz

Patent Title: Light Activated Gene Transduction Using Ultraviolet Light for Cell Targeted Gene Delivery
Patent #: 2003210820
Issue Date: Apr 03, 2008
Country: Australia
Invented By: Jarod C Finlay, Thomas H Foster, Regis O'Keefe, Edward M Schwarz

Patent Title: Light Activated Gene Transduction Using Long Wavelength Ultraviolet Light for Cell Targeted Gene Delivery
Patent #: 7,524,327
Issue Date: Apr 28, 2009
Country: United States
Invented By: Jarod C Finlay, Thomas H Foster, Regis O'Keefe, Edward M Schwarz

Patent Title: Light Activated Gene Transduction (LAGeT) for Cell Targeted Gene Delivery
Patent #: CH1867715
Issue Date: Mar 18, 2009
Country: Switzerland/Liechtenstein
Invented By: Jarod C Finlay, Thomas H Foster, Regis O'Keefe, Paul T Rubery, Edward M Schwarz

Patent Title: Light Activated Gene Transduction (LAGeT) for Cell Targeted Gene Delivery
Patent #: GB1867715
Issue Date: Mar 18, 2009
Country: United Kingdom
Invented By: Jarod C Finlay, Thomas H Foster, Regis O'Keefe, Paul T Rubery, Edward M Schwarz

Patent Title: Light Activated Gene Transduction (LAGeT) for Cell Targeted Gene Delivery
Patent #: DE1867715
Issue Date: Mar 18, 2009
Country: Germany
Invented By: Jarod C Finlay, Thomas H Foster, Regis O'Keefe, Paul T Rubery, Edward M Schwarz

Patent Title: Light Activated Gene Transduction (LAGeT) for Cell Targeted Gene Delivery
Patent #: IT1867715
Issue Date: Mar 18, 2009
Country: Italy
Invented By: Jarod C Finlay, Thomas H Foster, Regis O'Keefe, Paul T Rubery, Edward M Schwarz

Patent Title: Light Activated Gene Transduction (LAGeT) for Cell Targeted Gene Delivery
Patent #: FR1867715
Issue Date: Mar 18, 2009
Country: France
Invented By: Jarod C Finlay, Thomas H Foster, Regis O'Keefe, Paul T Rubery, Edward M Schwarz

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Publications

Journal Articles

12/7/2018
Hu N, Antoury L, Baran TM, Mitra S, Bennett CF, Rigo F, Foster TH, Wheeler TM. "Non-invasive monitoring of alternative splicing outcomes to identify candidate therapies for myotonic dystrophy type 1." Nature communications.. 2018 Dec 7; 9(1):5227. Epub 2018 Dec 07.

11/20/2018
Trewin AJ, Berry BJ, Wei AY, Bahr LL, Foster TH, Wojtovich AP. "Light-induced oxidant production by fluorescent proteins." Free radical biology & medicine.. 2018 Nov 20; 128:157-164. Epub 2018 Feb 06.

2/20/2018
Barnett ME, Baran TM, Foster TH, Wojtovich AP. "Quantification of light-induced miniSOG superoxide production using the selective marker, 2-hydroxyethidium." Free radical biology & medicine.. 2018 Feb 20; 116:134-140. Epub 2018 Jan 31.

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