Scholars@Duke
Clare Smith

Clare Smith

Assistant Professor of Molecular Genetics and Microbiology
Molecular Genetics and Microbiology
264 Jones, Box 3054, Durham, NC 27710
270 Jones BOX3054, 207 Research Drive, Durham, NC 27710

Featured Works

CCR6 is essential for effective immunity against Mycobacterium tuberculosis infection in mice.

Journal article Infect Immun · April 30, 2026 Featured Publication Tuberculosis (TB) is a global epidemic that has threatened human health throughout recorded history. TB disease, caused by infection with Mycobacterium tuberculosis (M.tb), is heterogeneous between individuals, and clinical TB outcomes are impacted by gene ... Full text Link to item Cite

High-quality mouse reference genomes reveal the structural complexity of the murine protein-coding landscape.

Journal article Cell Genom · February 11, 2026 Featured Publication We present a collection of 17 high-quality long-read inbred mouse strain genomes with complete annotation (contig N50s of 0.8-33.9 Mbp). This collection includes 12 widely used classical laboratory strains and 5 wild-derived strains. We have resolved previ ... Full text Link to item Cite

Cathepsin Z is a conserved susceptibility factor underlying tuberculosis severity.

Journal article PLoS Biol · September 2025 Featured Publication Tuberculosis (TB) outcomes vary widely, from asymptomatic infection to mortality, yet most animal models do not recapitulate human phenotypic and genotypic variation. The genetically diverse Collaborative Cross mouse panel models distinct facets of TB dise ... Full text Link to item Cite

Genome-wide screen identifies host loci that modulate Mycobacterium tuberculosis fitness in immunodivergent mice.

Journal article G3 (Bethesda) · August 30, 2023 Featured Publication Genetic differences among mammalian hosts and among strains of Mycobacterium tuberculosis (Mtb) are well-established determinants of tuberculosis (TB) patient outcomes. The advent of recombinant inbred mouse panels and next-generation transposon mutagenesi ... Full text Link to item Cite

Mycobacterial Genetic Technologies for Probing the Host-Pathogen Microenvironment.

Journal article Infect Immun · June 15, 2023 Featured Publication Mycobacterium tuberculosis (Mtb), the causative agent of tuberculosis, is one of the oldest and most successful pathogens in the world. Diverse selective pressures encountered within host cells have directed the evolution of unique phenotypic traits, resul ... Full text Link to item Cite

Differential Requirement for IRGM Proteins during Tuberculosis Infection in Mice.

Journal article Infect Immun · February 16, 2023 Featured Publication Mycobacterium tuberculosis (Mtb) is a bacterium that exclusively resides in human hosts and remains a dominant cause of morbidity and mortality among infectious diseases worldwide. Host protection against Mtb infection is dependent on the function of immun ... Full text Link to item Cite

An ancestral mycobacterial effector promotes dissemination of infection.

Journal article Cell · November 23, 2022 Featured Publication The human pathogen Mycobacterium tuberculosis typically causes lung disease but can also disseminate to other tissues. We identified a M. tuberculosis (Mtb) outbreak presenting with unusually high rates of extrapulmonary dissemination and bone disease. We ... Full text Link to item Cite

Host-pathogen genetic interactions underlie tuberculosis susceptibility in genetically diverse mice.

Journal article Elife · February 3, 2022 Featured Publication The outcome of an encounter with Mycobacterium tuberculosis (Mtb) depends on the pathogen's ability to adapt to the variable immune pressures exerted by the host. Understanding this interplay has proven difficult, largely because experimentally tractable a ... Full text Link to item Cite

TMEM41B is a host factor required for the replication of diverse coronaviruses including SARS-CoV-2.

Journal article PLoS Pathog · May 2021 Featured Publication Antiviral therapeutics are a front-line defense against virally induced diseases. Because viruses frequently mutate to escape direct inhibition of viral proteins, there is interest in targeting the host proteins that the virus must co-opt to complete its r ... Full text Link to item Cite

These Are the Genes You're Looking For: Finding Host Resistance Genes.

Journal article Trends Microbiol · April 2021 Featured Publication Humanity's ongoing struggle with new, re-emerging and endemic infectious diseases serves as a frequent reminder of the need to understand host-pathogen interactions. Recent advances in genomics have dramatically advanced our understanding of how genetics c ... Full text Link to item Cite

Functionally overlapping variants control TB susceptibility in Collaborative Cross mice

Journal article · 2019 Featured Publication Host genetics plays an important role in determining the outcome of Mycobacterium tuberculosis (Mtb) infection. We previously found that Collaborative Cross mouse strains differ in their susceptibility to Mtb, and that the CC042/GeniUnc (CC042) strain suf ... Full text Cite

Modeling Diversity: Do Homogeneous Laboratory Strains Limit Discovery?

Journal article Trends Microbiol · November 2018 Featured Publication The outcome of chronic infections is highly variable. The heterogeneous disease outcomes in natural populations differ from genetically homogeneous infection models. Here, we use tuberculosis as a 'case study' to contrast the genetic landscape in natural p ... Full text Link to item Cite

Tuberculosis Susceptibility and Vaccine Protection Are Independently Controlled by Host Genotype.

Journal article mBio · September 20, 2016 Featured Publication UNLABELLED: The outcome of Mycobacterium tuberculosis infection and the immunological response to the bacillus Calmette-Guerin (BCG) vaccine are highly variable in humans. Deciphering the relative importance of host genetics, environment, and vaccine prepa ... Full text Open Access Link to item Cite