Dr. Melissa Smith utilizes single molecule sequencing to address knowledge gaps at the intersection of genomics, immunology, and virology. She obtained her PhD at Harvard University, followed by postdoctoral training at the Institut Pasteur, Paris and University of California, San Diego. It was her two-year stint working in Applications Development and Marketing at PacBio from 2014-2016 that identified her passion for technology development and leveraging genomics tools to address research questions at the host-pathogen interface. Returning to academia, she first worked as Associate Director of Technology Development at the Icahn School of Medicine at Mount Sinai and then as Associate Professor (with tenure) at University of Louisville. Dr. Smith and colleagues launched Clareo Biosciences, Inc. in March 2024 to leverage long read immunogenomics solutions to identify critical biomarkers of vaccine and immunotherapy responses.