Dr Jacqueline Smith
Group Leader/Senior Research Fellow

Contact details
- The Roslin Institute
- Genome Biology
- The Royal (Dick) School of Veterinary Studies
- Global Academy of Agriculture and Food Security
- Sustainable Agriculture
- Infectious Diseases
- Enhancing Health
Address
- Street
-
The Roslin Institute
Easter Bush Campus
Midlothian - City
- Post code
- EH25 9RG
Availability
Willingness to take Ph.D. students: Yes
Background
After obtaining my PhD in genetics from St. Andrews University I started working as a post-doc at The Roslin Institute, where I’ve been ever since. During this time, I worked alongside Prof Dave Burt in the field of avian genomics and now lead my own group in the same area. My interests lie primarily in examining the host response to avian viral infections and trying to understand the genetic mechanisms of resistance; particularly with regard to Marek’s Disease Virus and avian flu. I also work as part of the Centre for Tropical Livestock Genetics and health (CTLGH), which is a collaboration between Roslin, SRUC (Scotland’s Rural College) and ILRI (International Livestock Research Institute) in Africa.
Area of Expertise
Research Expertise: Avian Genomics
Collaborative Activity
-
Dr. Janet Fulton, Hyline International, Iowa, USA
-
Dr. Rachel Hawken, Cobb-Vantress, Arkansas, USA
-
Prof. Jim Kaufman, Cambridge/Edinburgh, UK
-
Dr. Andrew Mason, York, UK
-
Dr. Kirsty Short, Queensland, Australia
-
Dr. Laurent Frantz, Munich/London
-
Dr. Lingzhao Fang, Edinburgh, UK
-
Prof. Emiliano Lasagna, Perugia, Italy
-
Prof. Morris Soller, The Hebrew University of Jerusalem, Israel
- Prof. Olivier Hanotte, ILRI, Addis Ababa, Ethiopia/Nottingham, UK
-
Prof. Zhuo-Cheng Hou, China Agricultural University, Beijing, China
Qualifications
Doctor of Philosophy (PhD), University of St Andrews Bachelor of Science, University of St Andrews
Qualifications
PhD - Genetics - University of St. Andrews (1997)
BSc - Biochemistry with Microbiology - University of St. Andrews (1992)
Responsibilities & affiliations
Editorial Board of Genes
Senior Editorial Board Member for BMC Genomics
Section Editor for British Poultry Science
Associate Editor for Cytogenetic and Genome Research
Open to PhD supervision enquiries?
Yes
Current PhD students supervised
Md Ataul Goni Rabbani (PhD student) (2022 - current)
Past PhD students supervised
Research students
Joshua Mountford (MScR) (2020-2021)
Callum Donnelly (PhD student) (2017 to 2020)
Elvire Berthenet (internship from ENSTBB, Bordeaux) (2013-2014)
Research summary
Genomics of Avian Viral Infections
Current research interests
I work in the field of avian genomics, and my focus is on ‘resilience’ in birds – whether that be through disease resistance or adaptation to environmental stress. One of my prime interests is in investigating the host response to avian viral infections, increasing the understanding of the genetic mechanisms underlying resistance, particularly with regard to Marek’s Disease Virus (MDV) and avian flu (AI). Projects are also ongoing where we use wild birds as a model to study seasonality and environmental adaptation. I also work as part of the Centre for Tropical Livestock Genetics and Health (CTLGH), which is a collaboration between The Roslin Institute, SRUC (Scotland’s Rural College) and ILRI (International Livestock Research Institute) in Africa. This work aims to improve backyard poultry production in sub-Saharan Africa by investigating the genetics of traits related to environmental adaptation and resilience. I am a member of several research consortia including GeneSWitCH (FAANG) and the Chicken Diversity Consortium.-
RNAseq reveals modulation of genes involved in fatty acid biosynthesis in chicken liver according to genetic background, sex and diet
In:
Animal Genetics, vol. 54, pp. 338-354
DOI: https://doi.org/10.1111/age.13299
Research output: Contribution to Journal › Article (Published) -
nf-core/isoseq: Simple gene and isoform annotation with PacBio Iso-Seq long-read sequencing
(2 pages)
In:
Bioinformatics, vol. 39, pp. 1-2
DOI: https://doi.org/10.1093/bioinformatics/btad150
Research output: Contribution to Journal › Article (Published) -
RNA-Seq profiling between commercial and indigenous Iranian chickens highlights differences in innate immune gene expression
(14 pages)
In:
Genes, vol. 14, pp. 1-15
DOI: https://doi.org/10.3390/genes14040793
Research output: Contribution to Journal › Article (Published) -
The transcriptome of chicken migratory primordial germ cells reveals intrinsic sex differences and hallmark germ cell genes
(15 pages)
In:
Cells, vol. 12, pp. 1-15
DOI: https://doi.org/10.3390/cells12081151
Research output: Contribution to Journal › Article (Published) -
Different stress response strategies of an arctic breeding bird (Calcarius lapponicus) under inclement weather conditions revealed by the genome and RNA-seq analyses
Research output: Contribution to Conference › Abstract (Accepted/In press) -
Genomics of dwarfism in Italian local chicken breeds
(17 pages)
In:
Genes, vol. 3, pp. 1-18
DOI: https://doi.org/10.3390/genes14030633
Research output: Contribution to Journal › Article (Published) -
Identification of alternative splicing events related to fatty liver formation in duck using full-length transcripts
In:
BMC Genomics, vol. 24, pp. 1-13
DOI: https://doi.org/10.1186/s12864-023-09160-4
Research output: Contribution to Journal › Article (Published) -
The molecular basis of differential host responses to avian influenza viruses in avian species with differing susceptibility
(16 pages)
In:
Frontiers in Cellular and Infection Microbiology, vol. 13, pp. 1-17
DOI: https://doi.org/10.3389/fcimb.2023.1067993
Research output: Contribution to Journal › Article (E-pub ahead of print) -
Comparative analysis of different inbred chicken lines highlights how a hereditary inflammatory state affects susceptibility to avian influenza virus
(19 pages)
In:
Viruses, vol. 15, pp. 1-20
DOI: https://doi.org/10.3390/v15030591
Research output: Contribution to Journal › Article (Published) -
Recovering the ‘missing’ avian genes using multi-omics data
In:
Cytogenetic and Genome Research
DOI: https://doi.org/10.1159/000529376
Research output: Contribution to Journal › Article (E-pub ahead of print)
In the press
Media articles:
- Poultry World: https://www.poultryworld.net/Genetics/Articles/2020/6/DNA-insights-help-poultry-producers-in-developing-countries-595096E/ AnimalPharm: https://animalpharm.agribusinessintelligence.informa.com/AP017487/New-DNA-insight-could-help-poultry-farmers-in-developing-nations WATTAgNet: https://www.wattagnet.com/articles/40609-viral-dna-findings-could-better-protect-poultry-health?v=preview The Poultry Site: https://www.thepoultrysite.com/news/2020/10/genetics-breakthrough-could-help-treat-mareks-disease Food and Farming: https://www.foodandfarmingfutures.co.uk/Library/content/Detail.aspx?ctID=ZWVhNzBlY2QtZWJjNi00YWZiLWE1MTAtNWExOTFiMjJjOWU1&rID=MjQxODA=&sID=MQ==&bckToL=VHJ1ZQ==&qcf=&ph=VHJ1ZQ== Feedstuffs: https://www.feedstuffs.com/nutrition-health/gene-findings-suggest-mareks-disease-treatment-targets VetCommunity: https://vetcommunity.com/vc/newsitem/?story=19721 MRCVS: https://mrcvs.co.uk/en/news/19721/DNA-discovery-could-help-treat-Marek's-disease" FarmingUK: https://www.farminguk.com/news/gene-findings-could-help-treat-costly-poultry-virus_56725.html CTLGH: https://www.ctlgh.org/key-drivers-found-for-environmental-adaptation-in-ethiopian-chickens/ SciDev: https://www.scidev.net/sub-saharan-africa/news/climate-resilience-of-rural-chicken-is-in-the-genes/ AF24 news: https://af24news.com/2021/06/18/dna-of-ethiopian-chickens-adapting-to-climate-change-study-finds/ Newsbeezer: https://newsbeezer.com/ethiopia/environment-drives-dna-changes-in-ethiopian-chickens/ The Poultry Site: https://www.thepoultrysite.com/articles/environment-drives-dna-changes-in-ethiopian-chickens SciDevNet: https://www.scidev.net/sub-saharan-africa/news/climate-resilience-of-rural-chicken-is-in-the-genes/ PhysOrg: https://phys.org/news/2021-07-climate-resilience-rural-chicken-genes.html AlphaGalileo: https://www.alphagalileo.org/en-gb/Item-Display/ItemId/210301?returnurl=https://www.alphagalileo.org/en-gb/Item-Display/ItemId/210301 WATTAgNet: https://www.wattagnet.com/articles/45556-chicken-study-explores-genetic-resistance-to-viruses?v=preview Roslin blog: https://www.ed.ac.uk/roslin/news-events/blog/snapshot-of-poultry-science-captured-in-research-c vn online: https://vnonline.co.uk/vn/news/22354/Study-finds-clues-to-avian-flu-resistance MRCVS: https://mrcvs.co.uk/en/news/22354/Study-finds-clues-to-avian-flu-resistance CIEL: https://cielivestock.co.uk/news/multi-species-study-understand-bird-flu/
- Interview: DDI – women in data (https://ddi.ac.uk/women-in-data/)
- Interview: Meet our scientists (https://www.ed.ac.uk/roslin/news-events/meet-our-scientists/dr-jacqueline-smith)