The Australian Research Data Commons (ARDC) invites you to participate in a short survey about your
interaction with the ARDC and use of our national research infrastructure and services. The survey will take
approximately 5 minutes and is anonymous. It’s open to anyone who uses our digital research infrastructure
services including Reasearch Link Australia.
We will use the information you provide to improve the national research infrastructure and services we
deliver and to report on user satisfaction to the Australian Government’s National Collaborative Research
Infrastructure Strategy (NCRIS) program.
Please take a few minutes to provide your input. The survey closes COB Friday 29 May 2026.
Complete the 5 min survey now by clicking on the link below.
Placental nutrient transport shows how complex traits evolve. This project aims to use amino acid transport in the vertebrate placenta as a model to demonstrate how genes are recruited and modified to produce a major organ. Using an innovative combination of a new technology, selected reaction monitoring, and transcriptomic and molecular approaches, plus carefully selected Australian species pairs, this project will study the evolution of a complex trait (placental amino acid transport). The pr ....Placental nutrient transport shows how complex traits evolve. This project aims to use amino acid transport in the vertebrate placenta as a model to demonstrate how genes are recruited and modified to produce a major organ. Using an innovative combination of a new technology, selected reaction monitoring, and transcriptomic and molecular approaches, plus carefully selected Australian species pairs, this project will study the evolution of a complex trait (placental amino acid transport). The project will provide fundamental advances in our knowledge of the nutrient transport during pregnancy that is required to produce a healthy baby.Read moreRead less
ARC Centre of Excellence for Electromaterials Science. The ARC Centre of Excellence for Electromaterials Science (ACES) will create next generation electrochemical devices via the precision assembly of nano/micro dimensional components into macroscopic structures. Through the discovery of new materials and structures, and understanding how spatial arrangement in 3D influences chemical, physical and biological properties, ACES will define the cutting edge of Electromaterials Science. The resultin ....ARC Centre of Excellence for Electromaterials Science. The ARC Centre of Excellence for Electromaterials Science (ACES) will create next generation electrochemical devices via the precision assembly of nano/micro dimensional components into macroscopic structures. Through the discovery of new materials and structures, and understanding how spatial arrangement in 3D influences chemical, physical and biological properties, ACES will define the cutting edge of Electromaterials Science. The resulting technology breakthroughs will have a direct impact on some of today's most challenging global problems in clean energy, synthetic biosystems, diagnostics and soft robotics. National benefit to Australia will be realised through the creation of new manufacturing industries.Read moreRead less
An efficient approach to the computation of bacterial evolutionary distance. This project aims to apply advanced mathematical tools to improve our understanding of bacterial evolution. Bacteria account for as much total Earth biomass as all plant species put together, and have an unparalleled ability to evolve quickly and adapt to changing environments. Unfortunately, the existing mathematical models used to model bacterial evolution are generally computationally intractable. This project will r ....An efficient approach to the computation of bacterial evolutionary distance. This project aims to apply advanced mathematical tools to improve our understanding of bacterial evolution. Bacteria account for as much total Earth biomass as all plant species put together, and have an unparalleled ability to evolve quickly and adapt to changing environments. Unfortunately, the existing mathematical models used to model bacterial evolution are generally computationally intractable. This project will rectify this situation by using representation theory to transform combinatorial group theory into linear algebra, allowing for the application of advanced methods of numeric approximation. This will provide a better understanding of how bacteria evolve and improve our ability to manage their impact.Read moreRead less
Micro-electrofluidic platforms for monitoring 3D human biological models. The ability to study living cells and human biological models (cell cultures) delivers greater understanding of basic biological function and response to applied (bio)chemical stimuli. Creating the physical environments to sustain biological models, and mimic natural conditions and fluidic pathways, is immensely challenging, yet essential to deliver meaningful observational data. This project will deliver this capability t ....Micro-electrofluidic platforms for monitoring 3D human biological models. The ability to study living cells and human biological models (cell cultures) delivers greater understanding of basic biological function and response to applied (bio)chemical stimuli. Creating the physical environments to sustain biological models, and mimic natural conditions and fluidic pathways, is immensely challenging, yet essential to deliver meaningful observational data. This project will deliver this capability through the convergence of expertise and innovation in analytical chemistry, materials science and cellular biology, ultilising the latest technology and understanding of 3D micro/electrofluidics, to enable the study and stimulation of advanced biological models, sustained within precisely controlled 3D micro-environments.Read moreRead less
Linkage Infrastructure, Equipment And Facilities - Grant ID: LE170100075
Funder
Australian Research Council
Funding Amount
$315,000.00
Summary
Acoustic liquid handling robotics for bioactive compound discovery. This project aims to use a Labcyte Echo 550 acoustic dispenser with Combination Software to deliver sophisticated assay-ready screening. The Echo is the only liquid handling dispenser for 1536-well microplates and will allow Australian researchers to develop assay miniaturisation. The robotics will provide our nation’s researchers with a distinct competitive edge by enhancing assay sophistication, accuracy and reproducibility wh ....Acoustic liquid handling robotics for bioactive compound discovery. This project aims to use a Labcyte Echo 550 acoustic dispenser with Combination Software to deliver sophisticated assay-ready screening. The Echo is the only liquid handling dispenser for 1536-well microplates and will allow Australian researchers to develop assay miniaturisation. The robotics will provide our nation’s researchers with a distinct competitive edge by enhancing assay sophistication, accuracy and reproducibility while reducing cost. The expected benefits will advance the elucidation of molecular mechanisms involved in complex biological phenomena. The benefits of this are substantial, including reduction in test compound and reagents, which in turn reduces laboratory costs, conserves cells and increases data quality.Read moreRead less
Understanding the mechanisms underpinning complex sociality. This project aims to investigate the mechanisms underlying the formation of complex social systems in vertebrates. Our understanding of these mechanisms is strongly biased towards a few model systems. We have identified a novel Australian model system with a wide range of sociality for this purpose. This project expects to generate new knowledge on how the social environment interacts with the brain during social organisation. Expected ....Understanding the mechanisms underpinning complex sociality. This project aims to investigate the mechanisms underlying the formation of complex social systems in vertebrates. Our understanding of these mechanisms is strongly biased towards a few model systems. We have identified a novel Australian model system with a wide range of sociality for this purpose. This project expects to generate new knowledge on how the social environment interacts with the brain during social organisation. Expected outcomes include the refinement of social theory and capacity building via international collaboration and postgraduate training. This work will provide significant benefits by increasing our understanding of how the brain and social environment interact to moderate aggression and enhance social associations.Read moreRead less
Unlocking telomere effects on life, death and fitness in a warming world. Few things in biology provoke such a strong desire for understanding as when adult death and fatal disease can be predicted early in life. A common factor linking early life stress, disease, ageing and time of death are telomeres, the protective regions at the end of each chromosome. This project aims to explicitly link telomere dynamics in free-living ectotherm populations with experimental approaches to advance our under ....Unlocking telomere effects on life, death and fitness in a warming world. Few things in biology provoke such a strong desire for understanding as when adult death and fatal disease can be predicted early in life. A common factor linking early life stress, disease, ageing and time of death are telomeres, the protective regions at the end of each chromosome. This project aims to explicitly link telomere dynamics in free-living ectotherm populations with experimental approaches to advance our understanding of parental and environmental effects on offspring telomeres and their effects later in life. This project will take advantage of one of the world’s longest datasets on ectotherm responses to climate to provide new knowledge of how telomeres affect fitness and the role that the environment plays.Read moreRead less
Plasticity and the origins of family. This project aims to answer the question of how family life evolved. Humans and many animals live in stable family groups because of the benefits of cooperation. Surprisingly, we have a very poor understanding of how family living initially evolved. This project will experimentally determine how simple responses to environmental change have driven the evolution of family living and thereby refine theories for understanding social evolution more generally. ....Plasticity and the origins of family. This project aims to answer the question of how family life evolved. Humans and many animals live in stable family groups because of the benefits of cooperation. Surprisingly, we have a very poor understanding of how family living initially evolved. This project will experimentally determine how simple responses to environmental change have driven the evolution of family living and thereby refine theories for understanding social evolution more generally. This information will be useful to environmental policy makers that need to consider the role of environmental change in managing and conserving viable populations.Read moreRead less
A stitch in time: evidence-based strategy to keep platypus from extinction. This project aims to assess the status of the iconic platypus, identified as ‘near-threatened’ in 2014. The project’s multidisciplinary approach plans to compare regulated and unregulated rivers to investigate metapopulation structure (via physical and genetic tagging), current condition and future adaptability of the species, as well as other threats and habitat quality. The project also links vulnerability of platypus ....A stitch in time: evidence-based strategy to keep platypus from extinction. This project aims to assess the status of the iconic platypus, identified as ‘near-threatened’ in 2014. The project’s multidisciplinary approach plans to compare regulated and unregulated rivers to investigate metapopulation structure (via physical and genetic tagging), current condition and future adaptability of the species, as well as other threats and habitat quality. The project also links vulnerability of platypus populations to conservation actions that reduce extinction risk, through rigorous decision analyses. It is anticipated that the project will deliver implementable conservation actions at relevant scales.Read moreRead less
Linkage Infrastructure, Equipment And Facilities - Grant ID: LE200100043
Funder
Australian Research Council
Funding Amount
$389,000.00
Summary
Rapid Molecular (Bio)material Imaging by Infrared and Raman Microscopies. This project aims to undertake fast probe-free biochemical/chemical imaging of heterogeneity within cells and materials surfaces with new infrared and Raman imaging. It will generate new fundamental knowledge on: cell heterogeneity and dynamic processes; technologies for optimising cell printing; understanding toxicity of microplastics; and protocols for measuring materials of technological relevance. Expected outcomes inc ....Rapid Molecular (Bio)material Imaging by Infrared and Raman Microscopies. This project aims to undertake fast probe-free biochemical/chemical imaging of heterogeneity within cells and materials surfaces with new infrared and Raman imaging. It will generate new fundamental knowledge on: cell heterogeneity and dynamic processes; technologies for optimising cell printing; understanding toxicity of microplastics; and protocols for measuring materials of technological relevance. Expected outcomes include: interdisciplinary collaborations in new protocols for in-vitro drug development; cell printing technologies; environmental impacts of microplastics; and materials design. Expected benefits include innovative approaches to early stage drug design; improved environmental controls and advances in innovative materials.Read moreRead less