Susan M. Smith, PhD
Dickson Foundation – Harris Teeter Distinguished Professor of Nutrition
susan_smith@unc.edu
704-250-5065
Dr. Smith’s laboratory studies the molecular mechanisms by which dietary components affect prenatal development. Current work largely focuses upon alcohol and how it causes Fetal Alcohol Spectrum Disorders (FASD). We are interested in how alcohol damages the embryo and fetus, and in the environmental and genetic factors that attenuate or heighten alcohol’s toxicity.
First described in 1968, FASD remains a leading known cause of neurodevelopmental impairment in the U.S. Our work examines the molecular mechanism by which alcohol causes the specific neurobehavioral and craniofacial dysmorphologies that typify FASD. Our research has identified much of the intracellular signaling pathway initiated by alcohol to trigger the apoptotic elimination of craniofacial precursors, a population known as the neural crest. This work currently focuses on alcohol’s ability to cause nucleolar stress, a sensor of cellular energy status and an activator of p53/MDM2-mediated cell cycle arrest and cell death.
More recently, our work has expanded to interrogate how alcohol disrupts nutrient metabolism and requirements of the maternal-fetal dyad. Using bioinformatic approaches, we performed simultaneous whole transcriptome analysis and untargeted metabolomics on the alcohol-exposed mouse mother and her fetuses. This has revealed that alcohol causes a microbial metabolite biosignature in mom and fetus that may have both neuroprotective and neuroinflammatory effects. It has also revealed how alcohol changes maternal metabolism and impairs her ability to supply essential nutrients that support her growing fetus. We are further characterizing the maternal microbiome under alcohol and how this may further affect maternal-fetal metabolism. We have also studied the long-term health impact of FASD and find that alcohol causes metabolic syndrome in the aged offspring; moreover, this glucose intolerance and obesity both correlate with worsened cognitive function as it ages.
Finally, we use precision nutrition approaches to identify nutrient-related gene polymorphisms that affect cognitive performance in those who are diagnosed with FASD. This work has uncovered a critical influence of the essential nutrient choline and its transporter SLC44A1 and highlights a mechanism by which supplemental choline may improve outcomes in alcohol-exposed pregnancies. This work is expanding to identify additional nutrient-related effect alleles using a GWAS approach. Finally, in work now concluded, we showed that alcohol creates a functional iron deficiency in both mother and fetus, and this causes both fetal anemia and brain iron deficiency; dietary iron intervention reverses these deficits and improves cerebellum-dependent learning.
Brendon Coats
Research Technician, Smith Lab
Brendon Coats is currently pursuing a BS in Biology at the University of North Carolina at Charlotte. He started at the NRI as an intern in January of 2022, and now is a Research Technician in the Smith Lab where is excited to gain experience in the research field. He hopes to enroll into graduate school and earn his masters after UNC Charlotte.
George Flentke, PhD
Research Scientist, Smith Lab
George Flentke received his Ph.D. in Biochemistry from the University of Wisconsin-Madison, where his dissertation focused on the structure and catalytic activity of the enzyme UDP-galactose-4-epimerase, which is crucial for galactose metabolism. His postdoctoral research in Biochemistry and Pharmacology at Tufts University / New England Medical School focused on the design of inhibitors of dipeptidyl peptidase enzymes, which control immune function and HIV infection. After returning to UW-Madison he continued working with the immunosupressives cyclosporine and rapamycin. He is an experienced enzymologist/protein chemist and synthetic organic chemist. Currently, he manages Dr. Smith’s lab, where he investigates the mechanism by which alcohol alters ribosomal signaling and mTOR activity in alcohol-exposed neural crest.
Yanping Huang, PhD
Postdoctoral Research Associate, Smith Lab
Yanping Huang is a Postdoctoral Research Associate in Dr. Susan Smith’s Lab. She is from China where she earned her PhD degree. In her free time, she enjoys cooking and running.
Thomas Wilkie
Research Technician, Smith Lab
Thomas is from Chattanooga, TN. He graduated in May 2022 from Grove City College with a BS in Biochemistry.
Prenatal Calories More Important than Alcohol Exposure in Obesity
July 31, 2018 – Prenatal alcohol exposure (PAE) impairs fetal neurodevelopment and ultimately causes fetal alcohol spectrum disorders (FASD). PAE has also been associated with low birthweight and a higher risk for development of childhood obesity and metabolic dysfunction including glucose intolerance and cardiovascular disease.
Why Iron Man’s mother didn’t drink alcohol during pregnancy
November 27, 2017 -In the Marvel movie Iron Man, Tony Stark (Iron Man) is a genius inventor who creates a suit of armor, giving himself enhanced strength and the ability to fly. Although Tony Stark carries the name “Iron Man” for his suit of metal armor, his name is also an apt description of the abundance of iron that he has in his body, especially in his brain. The human body requires iron to function normally, and without enough iron, adults feel fatigued and have difficulty concentrating. Iron is even more essential during pregnancy. If Tony Stark’s mother had not consumed enough iron during pregnancy, it is unlikely that he would have become a brilliant inventor, because iron is necessary for the proper development of the infant’s brain.
The Ironies of Iron During Pregnancy
August 28, 2017 – Iron is listed by the American Pregnancy Association as one of the nutrients essential for healthy fetal development. Why? Because a lack of iron, a mineral naturally found in foods like meat, seafood and vegetables, directly impacts the development of the fetal brain. Iron also prevents anemia, low birth weight and premature delivery. Unfortunately, 22 percent of US women in their childbearing years are iron deficient, says Susan Smith, PhD, deputy director of science at the UNC Nutrition Research Institute on the NC Research Campus.
Celebrating Neuroscience during Brain Awareness Week
April 1, 2017 • When people hear the word “nutrition,” they often think of eating healthy fruits and vegetables, counting calories, and constant exercise. At the Nutrition Research Institute (NRI) and across the North Carolina Research Campus (NCRC) in Kannapolis, NC, these are frequent topics of scientific inquiry. But to scientists, “nutrition” is a word with […]
2023 Publications
2022 Publications
2021 Publications
2020 Publications