Jesse Jokerst

Jesse Jokerst completed a B.S. cum laude at Truman State University. After a Ph.D. in Chemistry at UT Austin with John McDevitt, he completed a postdoc with Sam Gambhir in Stanford Radiology. Now a Professor in the Department of Nanoengineering at UC San Diego, the Jokerst group is eager to collaborate on projects broadly related to human health and nanotechnology. 

"Our lab uses biomedical imaging to improve human health. We are particularly attracted to ultrasound imaging because of its low costs and good temporal and spatial resolution. We work to improve the contrast of the images via nanoscale contrast agents, which can often double as drug delivery vehicles. Another approach to improving contrast is photoacoustic imaging. Photoacoustic imaging is a “light in/sound out” approach versus the “sound in/sound out” of conventional ultrasound imaging. It is based on the thermal expansion of target tissue or contrast agents after a nano-second light pulse. We are using photoacoustic imaging for a variety of applications related to human health."

Awards:

2009: NIH Postdoc 

2011: American Cancer Society Postdoc

2013: NIH Pathway to Independence Award

2016: NIH New Innovator Award

2019: NSF CAREER Award 

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