Bio

Major research interests in the Smart lab include: i) skin/keratinocyte biology and skin cancer, ii) chemical, radiation and multistage carcinogenesis, iii) DNA damage response and iv) identification and characterization of genes/signaling pathways that are determinants of susceptibility to cancer. Current studies are focused on the Nrf2 and long noncoding RNAs. We utilize genetic/molecular/cellular-based systems, powerful genetically engineered mouse models and computational and unbiased omics approaches.

Awards

2019, Goodnight Distinguished Chair in Molecular Toxicology
2107, The Research Leadership Academy

Publications

• Conditional knockout of C/EBPβ in epidermis results in dysregulated lipid biosynthesis and a defect in skin barrier function , PLoS ONE (2025)
• Three-dimensional mass spectrometry imaging (3D MSI): incorporating top-hat IR-MALDESI and automatic z-axis correction , Analytical and Bioanalytical Chemistry (2025)
• Mutant Nrf2E79Q enhances the promotion and progression of a subset of oncogenic Ras keratinocytes and skin tumors , Redox Biology (2024)
• C/EBPβ deficiency enhances the keratinocyte innate immune response to direct activators of cytosolic pattern recognition receptors , Innate Immunity (2023)
• TIN2 is an architectural protein that facilitates TRF2-mediated trans- and cis-interactions on telomeric DNA , Nucleic Acids Research (2021)
• Measurement of Novel, Drinking Water-Associated PFAS in Blood from Adults and Children in Wilmington, North Carolina , Environmental Health Perspectives (2020)
• C/EBPβ suppresses keratinocyte autonomous type 1 IFN response and p53 to increase cell survival and susceptibility to UVB-induced skin cancer , Carcinogenesis (2019)
• C/EBPβ deletion in oncogenic Ras skin tumors is a synthetic lethal event , Cell Death & Disease (2018)
• Carcinogenesis , Molecular and Biochemical Toxicology (2018)
• Molecular Techniques in the Study of Gene Function , Molecular and Biochemical Toxicology (2018)