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Unsaturation of vapour pressure inside leaves: fundamental, but unknown. This project aims to determine when and to what extent the air inside leaves becomes unsaturated with water vapour. All current interpretation and modelling of leaf gas exchange assumes saturation under all circumstances. Compelling evidence has been obtained that suggests this is not true under moderate air vapour pressure deficits. A novel technique will be employed to assess the water vapour concentration of the air insi ....Unsaturation of vapour pressure inside leaves: fundamental, but unknown. This project aims to determine when and to what extent the air inside leaves becomes unsaturated with water vapour. All current interpretation and modelling of leaf gas exchange assumes saturation under all circumstances. Compelling evidence has been obtained that suggests this is not true under moderate air vapour pressure deficits. A novel technique will be employed to assess the water vapour concentration of the air inside leaves based on stable isotope analysis of carbon dioxide and water vapour exchanged between leaves and air. The project is expected to provide fundamental knowledge about how stomata regulate photosynthesis and water use, with significant implications for modelling vegetation function and for improving the performance of crop plants.Read moreRead less
On the physiology of plant transpiration. This project aims to better understand plant transpiration. It is significant from both a basic and a practical perspective. It intends to solve a conundrum of the biophysics of the evaporative sites within leaves. That is, in dry air, the relative humidity of intercellular air spaces suggests much lower liquid water potentials than those typically measured. At a practical level, the failure to sustain transpiration in dry conditions leads to desiccation ....On the physiology of plant transpiration. This project aims to better understand plant transpiration. It is significant from both a basic and a practical perspective. It intends to solve a conundrum of the biophysics of the evaporative sites within leaves. That is, in dry air, the relative humidity of intercellular air spaces suggests much lower liquid water potentials than those typically measured. At a practical level, the failure to sustain transpiration in dry conditions leads to desiccation and tissue death, and plants differ in this vulnerability. The aim is to apply a novel nanoparticle technique to measure the water potential distribution within the leaf, identify hydraulic resilience attributes, and develop a modern theory of optimal transpiration under varying conditions.Read moreRead less
Top-down rehydration: role of multiple water sources in mangrove function. This project aims to combine cutting-edge analytical and imaging techniques to assess contributions of atmospheric water sources to shoot-water balances, identify leaf traits associated with top-down rehydration, and determine the relative importance of different sources of water used by mangroves in maintenance of photosynthetic carbon assimilation along natural gradients in salinity and aridity. The capacity of shoots ....Top-down rehydration: role of multiple water sources in mangrove function. This project aims to combine cutting-edge analytical and imaging techniques to assess contributions of atmospheric water sources to shoot-water balances, identify leaf traits associated with top-down rehydration, and determine the relative importance of different sources of water used by mangroves in maintenance of photosynthetic carbon assimilation along natural gradients in salinity and aridity. The capacity of shoots to absorb atmospheric water could profoundly affect the diversity, survival and productivity of mangroves where high soil salinity limits water uptake by roots, particularly during hot, dry conditions.Read moreRead less
Interactive effects of salinity and nutrients: linking physiological processes with patterns in mangrove forest productivity. The proposed research will provide insight into physiological mechanisms that underpin mangrove productivity along salinity and aridity gradients, and determine how these factors affect plant responses to nutrient enrichment. Plant traits that increase salt and drought tolerance will be identified, thereby assisting development of plant varieties suited to Australian cond ....Interactive effects of salinity and nutrients: linking physiological processes with patterns in mangrove forest productivity. The proposed research will provide insight into physiological mechanisms that underpin mangrove productivity along salinity and aridity gradients, and determine how these factors affect plant responses to nutrient enrichment. Plant traits that increase salt and drought tolerance will be identified, thereby assisting development of plant varieties suited to Australian conditions. The results will also contribute to development of process-based models to better manage mangrove resources with climate change and increasing nutrient influx from urban or agricultural activities. Such models are essential for managing mangrove productivity for sustainable fisheries, and protecting the ecological well being of the coastal zone.Read moreRead less
Will stomatal responses to humidity and carbon dioxide constrain tropical forest productivity as atmospheric carbon dioxide rises? This project will investigate two physiological processes that will partly determine growth responses of tropical forest trees to rising atmospheric carbon dioxide. The project will produce equations summarising physiological responses that can be incorporated into process-based models of tropical forest productivity.
Mediator: a new concept for controlled gene expression in plant biotechnology. The Mediator protein complex is a new control point for the activation of all genes in higher organisms and the purpose of this project is to understand how three Mediator subunits regulate disease resistance in plants. The outcomes provide a new concept to direct natural gene expression towards robust crop plants able to cope with climatic variations.
Salinity tolerance along an aridity gradient: linking physiological processes with morphological constraints on leaf function in mangroves. The proposed research will provide insight into the physiological and morphological features that control the productivity of mangrove forests across broad gradients in salinity and aridity. Central to this is this identification of plant traits that increase salt and drought tolerance, which will assist in the development of plant varieties suited to Austra ....Salinity tolerance along an aridity gradient: linking physiological processes with morphological constraints on leaf function in mangroves. The proposed research will provide insight into the physiological and morphological features that control the productivity of mangrove forests across broad gradients in salinity and aridity. Central to this is this identification of plant traits that increase salt and drought tolerance, which will assist in the development of plant varieties suited to Australian conditions. The results will also contribute to development of process-based models to better predict the response of mangrove vegetation to changing climate. A deep understanding of the processes that influence the growth and survival of mangroves is of fundamental importance to sustainable fisheries and protection of wildlife reliant on coastal ecosystems. Read moreRead less
Systemic gene silencing in Arabidopsis, and relevance to plant biology. Gene silencing is a highly conserved process in plants and animals. It is of fundamental importance to gene regulation, virus defence, genome response to environment, and genome evolution. Remarkably, when gene silencing is triggered in plants it can spread throughout the organism. The aim of this project is to define the mechanism of intercellular movement of gene silencing in plants, and its relevance to plant growth and d ....Systemic gene silencing in Arabidopsis, and relevance to plant biology. Gene silencing is a highly conserved process in plants and animals. It is of fundamental importance to gene regulation, virus defence, genome response to environment, and genome evolution. Remarkably, when gene silencing is triggered in plants it can spread throughout the organism. The aim of this project is to define the mechanism of intercellular movement of gene silencing in plants, and its relevance to plant growth and defence against pathogens. Expected outcomes include increased understanding of intercellular genetic signalling in plants and its role in plant growth and disease resistance. The findings may also shed new light on mechanisms of gene silencing in animals.Read moreRead less
The use of molecular sponges to inhibit small Ribonucleic acid activity in plants. The deletion of gene activity is the most powerful way to understand gene function; however for genes encoding small Ribonucleic acids (RNAs) no current methodology can efficiently achieve this. Here, we aim to develop a gene silencing technology for small RNA encoding genes, which can be utilised to determine their function and used for biotechnological applications.
A systems approach to dissect the pathogenicity and host specificity of the Fusarium wilt pathogen, Fusarium oxysporum. The pathogenic fungus Fusarium oxysporum causes wilt disease in many plant species, including many that are important for Australian agriculture. Developing environmentally friendly disease protection strategies against this pathogen requires a clear understanding of infection strategies used by the fungus to invade its host. This project, along with a parallel project in host ....A systems approach to dissect the pathogenicity and host specificity of the Fusarium wilt pathogen, Fusarium oxysporum. The pathogenic fungus Fusarium oxysporum causes wilt disease in many plant species, including many that are important for Australian agriculture. Developing environmentally friendly disease protection strategies against this pathogen requires a clear understanding of infection strategies used by the fungus to invade its host. This project, along with a parallel project in host resistance mechanisms, will provide the basis for development of a world leading platform in mechanisms of fungal pathogenicity and virulence and plant disease resistance/susceptibility. Application of the knowledge gained in this project to other host-pathogen interactions will thereby provide opportunities for improved crop protection and biosecurity.Read moreRead less