Dr. Jerome Foster

Senior Lecturer

The University of the West Indies, St. Augustine Campus Trinidad and Tobago, W.I.

Telephone: (868) 645-0774 ext 4637

Email: jerome.foster@sta.uwi.edu

I currently work at the Dept. of Preclinical Sciences, The University of the West Indies, Trinidad and Tobago, where I am the Biochemistry Unit coordinator. I teach classes in Biochemistry. I also conduct research in biochemistry, viral phylogenetics, molecular biology and bioinformatics.

For more information you can find my ResearchGate profile here and his Google Scholar profile here

Qualification

Ph.D. Biochemistry (U.W.I. – St. Augustine)
B.Sc. Biochemistry & Chemistry (U.W.I. - Mona)

Fellowships and Training

UNU-BIOLAC International Workshop on Bioinformatics: Advanced course on High throughput Sequencing Data with R and Bioconductor (Jan. 19-21, 2011)
ICGEB/UNU-BIOLAC Caribbean Training Programme on Bioinformatics: Application of Structural and Computational Biology in Biomedical Sciences (Jan. 18-29, 2010)
4th International Ecology and Evolution of Infectious Diseases Workshop & Conference, Penn State, PA, USA (May 18-20, 2006)
7th European Workshop on Virus Evolution and Molecular Epidemiology, Leuven, Belgium (Sept. 6th - 12th , 2001)

Research Interests

Molecular biology
Viral Phylogenetics
Biochemistry
Bioinformatics
Noncommunicable diseases

Professional Experience

2006-Present Lecturer (Biochemistry), Faculty of Medical Sciences, University of the West Indies, St. Augustine, Trinidad
2005-2006 Postdoctoral Research Associate, Department of Biological Sciences, University of Tulsa, Tulsa, OK, USA
2004-2005 Part-Time Lecturer (Agricultural Food Systems), Faculty of Agriculture, College of Agriculture Science and Education, Port Antonio, Jamaica, W.I.

Featured Work

Phylogenetic characterization of Orthobunyaviruses isolated from Trinidad shows evidence of natural reassortment. Virus Genes. 2023. https://doi.org/10.1007/s11262-023-01973-5.
Viruses as Pathogens: Animal Viruses Affecting Wild and Domesticated Species. In: Tennant, P., Fermin, G. and J.E. Foster (eds.). Viruses: Molecular Biology, Host Interactions and Applications to Biotechnology. 2018; 192 - 216. Academic Press.
Viruses as Pathogens: Animal Viruses, With Emphasis on Human Viruses. In: Tennant, P., Fermin, G. and J.E. Foster (eds.). Viruses: Molecular Biology, Host Interactions and Applications to Biotechnology. 2018; 158 - 187. Academic Press.
Origins and Evolution of Viruses. In: Tennant, P., Fermin, G. and J.E. Foster (eds.). Viruses: Molecular Biology, Host Interactions and Applications to Biotechnology. 2018; 192 - 216. Academic Press.
Frequency of Fat Mass and Obesity-Associated Gene rs9939609 and Peroxisome Proliferator-Activated Receptor Gamma 2 Gene rs1801282 Polymorphisms among Trinidadian Neonates of Different Ethnicities and Their Relationship to Anthropometry at Birth. Journal o
Invasion and Maintenance of Dengue Virus Type 2 and Type 4 in the Americas. Journal of Virology. 2005; 79(23): 14680-14687.
Phylogeography and molecular evolution of dengue 2 in the Caribbean basin, 1981-2000. Virology. 2004; 324(1):48-59.
Molecular evolution and phylogeny of Dengue Type 4 virus in the Caribbean. Virology. 2003; 306(1):126-34.

Skills

Molecular Biology
Biochemistry
Viral Evolution
Phylogenetics & Phylogeography
Bioinformatics
Bioinformatics and Computational Biology

UWI Service

Member, Tropical Medicine Research Cluster (Faculty of Medical Sciences)
Co-organizer, Faculty of Medical Sciences booth for U.W.I. St. Augustine Staff Family Day (May 2008)
Organising Committee – 20th International Workshop on Virus Evolution and Molecular Epidemiology (August 2014 - August 2015)

Public Service

Co-ordinator for Biochemistry Unit, Faculty of Medical Sciences - presentation at Government of Trinidad & Tobago Ministry of Health/Ministry of Education Science Career Fair, April 23 -27, 2007.
U.W.I. Faculty of Medical Sciences representative - Trinidad & Tobago Bureau of Standards Cellular Tower Siting Standards Committee (2011 - 2012)

Professional Memberships

Member, American Academy for the Advancement of Science (2005 – 2011)
Member, American Society for Tropical Medicine and Hygiene (2005 – 2011)
Peer reviewer – Virology; Transactions of the Royal Society of Tropical Medicine and Hygiene; BMC Evolutionary Biology.

Courses Taught

First Examiner (Course Convenor) for the following Faculty of Medical Sciences course(s): MDSC2403 – Endocrine & Reproduction
Lecturer within the following courses: MDSC1401 – Environment & Health, MDSC1402 – Digestion & Metabolism, MDSC2403 – Endocrine & Reproduction, MDSC2404 – Muscles, Bones & Joints
Problem-Based Learning (PBL) tutor within the following courses: MDSC1401 – Environment & Health, MDSC2401 - Respiration, MDSC2402 - Neuroscience, MDSC2405 – Special Senses, MDSC2404 – Muscles, Bones & Joints

Graduate Students

PI- Dr. Candace Cuthbert (Ph.D. graduate, Dept. of Preclinical Sciences, supervised from Aug. 2008 – Nov. 2017)
PI- Dr. Kimberly Badal (Ph.D. graduate, Dept. of Preclinical Sciences, F.M.S., supervised from Feb. 2017 – Nov. 2022)
Advisory Committee- Dr. Orchid Allicock (Ph.D. graduate, Dept. of Preclinical Sciences, F.M.S., Aug. 2007 – Nov. 2015)
Advisory Committee- Dr. Nikita Sahadeo (Ph.D. graduate, Dept. of Preclinical Sciences, F.M.S, Aug. 2011 – Nov. 2020)

Grants

Campus Research and Publication Fund (2008),“RNA virus diversity in Trinidad bats - identification of potentially emergent viruses” – as co- investigator
Campus Research and Publication Fund (2008), “The influence of ethnic variability on the metabolic programming of nutrition-related chronic non-communicable diseases” – as principal investigator
Campus Research and Publication Fund (2010), “A Phylogenetic analysis of HCV infection within Trinidad” – as principal investigator
Caribbean Health Research Council (2010), “Assessment of the efficacy of anthocyanin supplementation in preventing abnormalities of insulin signalling in sucrose fed insulin resistance rats” - as principal investigator
U.W.I. Trinidad & Tobago Research and Development Impact Fund (2012), “Use of next generation molecular and evolutionary epidemiology to strengthen surveillance and develop models to predict and prevent the spread of Dengue”
U.W.I. Trinidad & Tobago Research and Development Impact Fund (2012). “Identification of the reservoirs of animal influenza viruses in Trinidad and Tobago”
Caribbean Public Health Agency (2013). “DNA methylation status of genes associated with insulin resistance and diabetes in the offspring of female rats”
U.S. National Institutes of Health (2019). “Dietary Modulation of Gut Microbiome and Host Gene Expression Across Human Evolution and the Emergence of Modern Human Disease”
U.W.I. Trinidad & Tobago Research and Development Impact Fund (2020). COVID-19: “Infectious Disease Molecular Epidemiology for PAthogen Control & Tracking (COVID-19: IMPACT)” – as co-investigator