Discovery Early Career Researcher Award - Grant ID: DE230101231
Funder
Australian Research Council
Funding Amount
$390,295.00
Summary
The effect of nutrition on male life history traits in humans. This project will provide answers to fundamental questions in evolutionary biology while identifying diet compositions that will benefit human health and well-being. Using a longitudinal public-health database, the Raine Study, and a theoretical framework from the field of Nutritional Ecology, the project will provide new knowledge on how nutrition affects key life-history traits in humans including immune function, reproductive heal ....The effect of nutrition on male life history traits in humans. This project will provide answers to fundamental questions in evolutionary biology while identifying diet compositions that will benefit human health and well-being. Using a longitudinal public-health database, the Raine Study, and a theoretical framework from the field of Nutritional Ecology, the project will provide new knowledge on how nutrition affects key life-history traits in humans including immune function, reproductive health, physical appearance, and healthy ageing. A systematic literature review on how diet impacts these life-history traits in animals generally, and an experimental study of the effect of diet on health and reproduction in the house mouse (a lab analog species for humans) will complement the Raine Study findings.Read moreRead less
Reforming evidence synthesis and translation for food and nutrition policy. This project aims to develop and evaluate a ‘Fit-for-Purpose’ framework to strategically guide evidence synthesis and translation for food and nutrition policies in order to effectively and safely tackle contemporary nutrition and food security problems. The project intends to use interdisciplinary approaches that integrate nutrition science, health promotion and policy science. The project would also examine policy-make ....Reforming evidence synthesis and translation for food and nutrition policy. This project aims to develop and evaluate a ‘Fit-for-Purpose’ framework to strategically guide evidence synthesis and translation for food and nutrition policies in order to effectively and safely tackle contemporary nutrition and food security problems. The project intends to use interdisciplinary approaches that integrate nutrition science, health promotion and policy science. The project would also examine policy-maker acceptance of the framework. Expected project outcomes include an enhanced capacity to critically analyse existing policies and guide future food and nutrition policy formulation and evaluation. This project would provide significant benefits by helping to promote public health, wellbeing and food system sustainability.Read moreRead less
Discovery Early Career Researcher Award - Grant ID: DE240100635
Funder
Australian Research Council
Funding Amount
$448,801.00
Summary
Understanding the development of lifestyle behaviours in early childhood. This project adopts novel statistical modelling and machine learning approaches to understand the development of lifestyle behaviours in early childhood. Despite the pivotal role of lifestyle behaviours in influencing health and quality of life, little research exists on lifestyle behaviours in early childhood. This project will establish a comprehensive understanding of lifestyle behaviours in early childhood by identifyi ....Understanding the development of lifestyle behaviours in early childhood. This project adopts novel statistical modelling and machine learning approaches to understand the development of lifestyle behaviours in early childhood. Despite the pivotal role of lifestyle behaviours in influencing health and quality of life, little research exists on lifestyle behaviours in early childhood. This project will establish a comprehensive understanding of lifestyle behaviours in early childhood by identifying key developmental time points, mechanisms of behavioural change, and children at risk of developing poor lifestyle behaviours. The project will inform strategies and policies to optimise lifestyle behaviours from the start of life and showcase the capabilities of novel methods in advancing behavioural epidemiology.Read moreRead less
Discovery Early Career Researcher Award - Grant ID: DE240100616
Funder
Australian Research Council
Funding Amount
$411,500.00
Summary
Sustained innovations to promote healthier food in the retail environment. This project aims to provide empirical evidence to drive sustained retailer change in favour of healthier food offerings. Australian food environments drive unhealthy diets and are a major cause of social, productivity and wellbeing loss. Using implementation science methods applied to rigorous real-world trials and policy collaborations, the project will test the effectiveness of innovative methods for sustaining organis ....Sustained innovations to promote healthier food in the retail environment. This project aims to provide empirical evidence to drive sustained retailer change in favour of healthier food offerings. Australian food environments drive unhealthy diets and are a major cause of social, productivity and wellbeing loss. Using implementation science methods applied to rigorous real-world trials and policy collaborations, the project will test the effectiveness of innovative methods for sustaining organisational change across a range of retail settings. Outcomes would deliver significant benefits by enabling retailers, governments, and public health advocates nationally and internationally to make the lasting changes to retail environments needed to improve productivity and population wellbeing.Read moreRead less
Accuracy and cost-effectiveness of technology-assisted dietary assessment. This project aims to compare leading methods for technology-assisted dietary assessment. Excessive cost and questionable accuracy limit the routine use of dietary assessment and undermine decision making in Australia. This project intends to compare three technology methods of assessing diet with the current standard recall method used in population surveys in order to confirm if the use of food images and automated metho ....Accuracy and cost-effectiveness of technology-assisted dietary assessment. This project aims to compare leading methods for technology-assisted dietary assessment. Excessive cost and questionable accuracy limit the routine use of dietary assessment and undermine decision making in Australia. This project intends to compare three technology methods of assessing diet with the current standard recall method used in population surveys in order to confirm if the use of food images and automated methods provide new approaches to improve accuracy and consumer acceptability. Expected outcomes of this project include more accurate and acceptable methods of assessing dietary intake. These findings will inform decision making for researchers, policy makers and practitioners in Australia, and potentially lead to more regular population surveillance.Read moreRead less
Industrial Transformation Training Centres - Grant ID: IC180100045
Funder
Australian Research Council
Funding Amount
$3,582,638.00
Summary
ARC Training Centre for Uniquely Australian Foods. The ARC Training Centre for Uniquely Australian Foods aims to provide a cohort of trained and industry-ready researchers who can lead the native foods industry forward. It plans to transform the native food and agribusiness sector, through the development of selected crops, foods and ingredients. The Centre will use an Indigenous governance group to oversee the process of converting traditional knowledge into branded products. Expected outcomes ....ARC Training Centre for Uniquely Australian Foods. The ARC Training Centre for Uniquely Australian Foods aims to provide a cohort of trained and industry-ready researchers who can lead the native foods industry forward. It plans to transform the native food and agribusiness sector, through the development of selected crops, foods and ingredients. The Centre will use an Indigenous governance group to oversee the process of converting traditional knowledge into branded products. Expected outcomes include technical information to support branding and market development, best practice development in social factors and legal arrangements for benefit sharing. This Centre will help drive sustainable growth of high-value products within the premium Australian food sector.
Read moreRead less
Impacts of diet on the brain, body, and microbiome. Dietary habits determine cognitive function, metabolism and the composition of the gut microbiome. This project seeks to clarify the role of the gut microbiome in diet-induced changes to cognition. It aims to do so through longitudinal studies of cognitive function in which dietary patterns are systematically varied, and intervention studies where cognition is tested after experimentally manipulating the gut microbiome. Expected outcomes inclu ....Impacts of diet on the brain, body, and microbiome. Dietary habits determine cognitive function, metabolism and the composition of the gut microbiome. This project seeks to clarify the role of the gut microbiome in diet-induced changes to cognition. It aims to do so through longitudinal studies of cognitive function in which dietary patterns are systematically varied, and intervention studies where cognition is tested after experimentally manipulating the gut microbiome. Expected outcomes include new interdisciplinary knowledge spanning psychology, neuroscience, nutrition and metabolism. This project is timely given the enormous shifts in Australian dietary choices. The knowledge to be gained should provide benefits to individual and public health, agriculture, and food systems.Read moreRead less
How do cells survive nutrient stress? Insight into mechanisms. This project studies cell survival under nutrient stress in eukaryotes. Building on extensive preliminary data that identifies novel TOR (Target of Rapamycin) Complex 2 (TORC2) control points it expects to generate new knowledge of critical and conserved features of stress control of macroautophagy that ensures cell survival. It uses interdisciplinary and innovative approaches to validate and characterize nutrient-stress dependent si ....How do cells survive nutrient stress? Insight into mechanisms. This project studies cell survival under nutrient stress in eukaryotes. Building on extensive preliminary data that identifies novel TOR (Target of Rapamycin) Complex 2 (TORC2) control points it expects to generate new knowledge of critical and conserved features of stress control of macroautophagy that ensures cell survival. It uses interdisciplinary and innovative approaches to validate and characterize nutrient-stress dependent signaling. Expected outcomes include novel insights into environmental control of cell proliferation and forging cross institutional collaborations. This knowledge benefits basic and applied biology and is relevant to industries/projects utilizing living cells as nutrient supports cell survival and proliferation.Read moreRead less
Safeguarding coral reef fisheries for future food security. This Fellowship aims to address the vulnerability of coral reef fisheries in Australia and the Indo-Pacific by identifying fishery targets that benefit human nutrition and will persist despite declining coral habitats and rising water temperature. This project will advance knowledge on coral and fish responses to increasingly frequent marine heatwaves, using novel methodologies rooted in ecological modelling, experimental marine biology ....Safeguarding coral reef fisheries for future food security. This Fellowship aims to address the vulnerability of coral reef fisheries in Australia and the Indo-Pacific by identifying fishery targets that benefit human nutrition and will persist despite declining coral habitats and rising water temperature. This project will advance knowledge on coral and fish responses to increasingly frequent marine heatwaves, using novel methodologies rooted in ecological modelling, experimental marine biology and climate forecasting. Expected outcomes include (i) a comprehensive toolbox for improved management of coral reefs and associated fisheries in Australia and beyond, and (ii) an integrated socio-ecological model for predicting coral reef fishery responses under environmental change.Read moreRead less
Towards 'zero hunger': improving food relief services in Australia. This project aims to improve the effectiveness of the food relief sector in meeting the needs of >5m Australians experiencing food insecurity annually. Following an innovative co-design process with sector stakeholders and their clients, this project investigates food relief service models that satisfy emergency needs as well as address root causes of food insecurity. Expected outcomes include tested best-practice guidelines and ....Towards 'zero hunger': improving food relief services in Australia. This project aims to improve the effectiveness of the food relief sector in meeting the needs of >5m Australians experiencing food insecurity annually. Following an innovative co-design process with sector stakeholders and their clients, this project investigates food relief service models that satisfy emergency needs as well as address root causes of food insecurity. Expected outcomes include tested best-practice guidelines and auditing tools for improving, monitoring and evaluating food relief services. These will not only assist >2,500 volunteer-run organisations to deliver more nutritious foods to more people, through a more dignified, fairer and diversified service, but map a pathway for clients out of food insecurity.Read moreRead less