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About

I am a natural scientist interested in using evolutionary theory to test hypotheses regarding the natural history and causality of human infectious and chronic diseases. My interest in human disease is broad and began with my doctoral work at the University of Utah where I studied the coevolutionary relationships among humans and the causative pathogens of tuberculosis and leprosy (genus Mycobacterium), accounting for the previously uncharacterized role of genetic recombination in this genus. I continued the work on human infectious diseases as a postdoctoral fellow studying the mechanisms of plasmid-mediated acquisition of drug-resistance in multidrug-resistant human pathogens. 

After my first postdoc, my research shifted to characterizing the molecular mechanisms implicated in chronic and inflammatory human diseases. I completed an additional postdoctoral fellowship at the University of Utah School of Medicine, Ophthalmology Department, where I studied the molecular and genetic bases of age-related macular degeneration. I subsequently worked as a Research Scientist at the University of Utah School of Medicine, Department of Internal Medicine, Pulmonary Division, where I studied the genetic and molecular pathways implicated in interstitial lung disease.

Currently, I am the Principal Investigator on two patient-reported outcome studies on Shortness of Breath in People with Dysautonomia and Fatigue, Pain and Sleep Disturbance in People with Dysautonomia.

I have worked with several undergraduate, graduate and medical students during the last several years and I am excited to continue working with highly motivated students who have an interest in understanding the mechanisms implicated in human disease. 

Selected Publications

O’Dell JA, Latham AJ, Walker A, Parisian DJ, Branch LE, Cox AA, Vanderburg DD, Chavis S, Smith SE. (2025). The diagnostic journey of dysautonomia patients: Insights from a patient-reported outcome study. The Journal of Patient Experience. Jan 21:12. PMID: 39839488

Morrison MA, Magalhaes TR, J Ramke J, Smith SE, et al. (2015). Ancestry of the Timorese: Disease associated genotype and allele sharing among human populations from throughout the world. Frontiers in Genetics. 2015 Jul 9;6:238. PMID: 26217379.

Cabana GS, Lewis CM Jr, Tito RY, Covey RA, Cáceres AM, C. Castillo Pampas L, De La Cruz AF, Durand D, Housman G, Hulsey BI, Iannacone GC, López PW, Martínez R, Medina A, Ortega Dávila O, Osorio, Pinto CP, Polo Santillán SI, Domínguez PR, Rubel M, Smith HF, Smith SE, Rubín de Celis Massa V, Lizárraga B, Stone AC. (2015). Population genetic structure of traditional populations in the Peruvian central Andes and implications for South American population history. Human Biology; 86:147–240. PMID: 25836744

Hartnett ME, Morrison MA, Smith SE, Yanovitch TL, Young TL, Mohamed S, Colaizy T, Dagle J, Carlo WA, Higgins R, Zaterka-Baxter K, Clark EAS, Faix R, Page G, Goldberg R, Murray J, Genomics subcommittee, DeAngelis MM, Cotten CM. (2014). Genetic variants associated with severe retinopathy of prematurity in extremely low birth weight infants. Investigative Ophthalmology and Visual Science; 55(10): 6194–6203. PMID: 25118269.

Smith SE, Showers-Corneli P, Dardenne CN, Harpending HH, Martin DP, Beiko RG. (2012). Comparative genomic and phylogenetic approaches to characterize the role of genetic recombination in mycobacterial evolution. PLoS One; 7 (11): e50070. PMID: 23189179.

Morrison MA, Silveira AC, Huynh N, Jun G, Smith SE, et al. (2011). Systems biology-based analysis implicates a novel role for vitamin d metabolism in the pathogenesis of age-related macular degeneration. Human Genomics. Oct; 5 (6): 538-68. PMID: 22155603.