Development of Novel Pesticidal Agents. We have discovered a family of naturally occurring plant proteins called the cyclotides that have potent insecticidal activity against Helicoverpa species, one of the major pests on cotton and corn in Australia and world wide. Preliminary evidence has shown that they also have activity against major pests to livestock in Australia, including sheep blowflies. To develop these proteins as potential pesticidal agents it is necessary to understand the struct ....Development of Novel Pesticidal Agents. We have discovered a family of naturally occurring plant proteins called the cyclotides that have potent insecticidal activity against Helicoverpa species, one of the major pests on cotton and corn in Australia and world wide. Preliminary evidence has shown that they also have activity against major pests to livestock in Australia, including sheep blowflies. To develop these proteins as potential pesticidal agents it is necessary to understand the structural basis for their activity. We will do this by chemically synthesising peptides with selected residues mutated to determine their effects on activity.Read moreRead less
Linkage Infrastructure, Equipment And Facilities - Grant ID: LE0347223
Funder
Australian Research Council
Funding Amount
$100,000.00
Summary
Quantitative PCR facility for New England region of NSW. The project will deliver the first real-time PCR facility in the New England Region of NSW for use by University, CSIRO and Industry scientists. The facility will be based at the University of New England and be used by animal scientists, molecular biologists, parasitologists, immunologists and botanists at these institutions, in many cases in collaborative research projects. It will also support the training of seven PhD students and a po ....Quantitative PCR facility for New England region of NSW. The project will deliver the first real-time PCR facility in the New England Region of NSW for use by University, CSIRO and Industry scientists. The facility will be based at the University of New England and be used by animal scientists, molecular biologists, parasitologists, immunologists and botanists at these institutions, in many cases in collaborative research projects. It will also support the training of seven PhD students and a post-doctoral fellow. The facility will be unique to the region and will remove our current need to use facilities in Brisbane or Sydney.Read moreRead less
Nucleolus targeting by negative strand RNA viruses. Negative strand viruses (NSVs) include diverse animal pathogens that represent significant threats to Australian livestock industries and access to export markets. The project aims to investigate the interface formed by NSVs with cellular nucleoli in order to determine roles in viral manipulation of cell biology during infection. This project hopes to address a major gap in knowledge in virology regarding the fundamental biology of NSVs, and is ....Nucleolus targeting by negative strand RNA viruses. Negative strand viruses (NSVs) include diverse animal pathogens that represent significant threats to Australian livestock industries and access to export markets. The project aims to investigate the interface formed by NSVs with cellular nucleoli in order to determine roles in viral manipulation of cell biology during infection. This project hopes to address a major gap in knowledge in virology regarding the fundamental biology of NSVs, and is expected to redefine our understanding of the virus-host interactions formed by these important pathogens. By determining the mechanisms of NSV-nucleolus interaction, the project plans to also provide important information for the development of new vaccines/therapeutics for livestock to combat NSVs that target nucleoli.Read moreRead less
Engineering a nanovaccine for cost-effective influenza poultry vaccination. The project aims to develop a new single-dose, room temperature-stable nanovaccine for cost-effective influenza poultry vaccination. The nanovaccine is based on viral protein assembly modularised to present multiple copies of influenza antigen. Particularly, this project focuses on the engineering of this vaccine manufacturing and formulation for a room temperature-stable vaccine. The resulting engineered vaccine would p ....Engineering a nanovaccine for cost-effective influenza poultry vaccination. The project aims to develop a new single-dose, room temperature-stable nanovaccine for cost-effective influenza poultry vaccination. The nanovaccine is based on viral protein assembly modularised to present multiple copies of influenza antigen. Particularly, this project focuses on the engineering of this vaccine manufacturing and formulation for a room temperature-stable vaccine. The resulting engineered vaccine would play an important role in preventing avian influenza outbreaks, which are currently affecting both developed and developing countries, costing millions of dollars due to the death and culling of infected poultry.Read moreRead less
Environmental contamination and pig disease: an Australian microbe evolves. The Australian pig industry produces pork commodities from over 4.75 million pigs per year. Infectious diseases in industrial-scale piggeries can have a devastating effect on pork production, particularly on feed conversion efficiency and growth rates, and can pose downstream environmental contamination and food safety risks. This project aims to assess a current infectious disease problem in pigs by studying a microbe t ....Environmental contamination and pig disease: an Australian microbe evolves. The Australian pig industry produces pork commodities from over 4.75 million pigs per year. Infectious diseases in industrial-scale piggeries can have a devastating effect on pork production, particularly on feed conversion efficiency and growth rates, and can pose downstream environmental contamination and food safety risks. This project aims to assess a current infectious disease problem in pigs by studying a microbe that appears to have uniquely evolved in Australia. These results could inform the rational design of monitoring, prevention and treatment strategies to minimise infection outbreaks in Australian pigs and may result in production benefits to the pork industry, reduced environmental microbial contamination and safer food.Read moreRead less
The molecular basis for oocyst and cyst wall formation in apicomplexan parasites. Apicomplexan parasites such as Eimeria, Neospora, Toxoplasma and Plasmodium are single celled organisms - protozoa - that cause some of the most serious infectious diseases of livestock and humans ever known. Transmission of these parasites is dependent on their ability to encase themselves in protective structures known as oocyst or cyst walls. These walls are resistant to harsh environmental conditions, chemicals ....The molecular basis for oocyst and cyst wall formation in apicomplexan parasites. Apicomplexan parasites such as Eimeria, Neospora, Toxoplasma and Plasmodium are single celled organisms - protozoa - that cause some of the most serious infectious diseases of livestock and humans ever known. Transmission of these parasites is dependent on their ability to encase themselves in protective structures known as oocyst or cyst walls. These walls are resistant to harsh environmental conditions, chemicals and attack by the immune system. We will discover and characterise the molecular basis for cyst wall formation. This fundamental knowledge will be the building block for new, highly specific drugs and vaccines to control these extremely important pathogens.Read moreRead less
Marine Natural Products as Sources of Agrochemicals - The Variolins. The aim of this project is the identification of new classes of agrochemicals with better pest resistance and environmental profiles. The proposed partnership with a major international chemical manufacturing organization will allow access to state-of-the-art techniques for the screening and development of novel compounds as agents for the control of pests that affect many major agricultural crops relevant to Australia's econo ....Marine Natural Products as Sources of Agrochemicals - The Variolins. The aim of this project is the identification of new classes of agrochemicals with better pest resistance and environmental profiles. The proposed partnership with a major international chemical manufacturing organization will allow access to state-of-the-art techniques for the screening and development of novel compounds as agents for the control of pests that affect many major agricultural crops relevant to Australia's economy. Australian graduate students will experience the operations of one of the world's biggest chemical manufacturers. The derivation of agrochemicals from marine sources will promote further recognition of the value of marine ecosystems around Australia.Read moreRead less
Biogenesis of secretory organelles and the function of adhesins secreted during the establishment of plant disease. Many agriculturally important crops and Australian native plants are susceptible to diseases caused by species of Phytophthora, a fungus-like organism that lives in the soil. Economic losses due to Phytophthora diseases are estimated to exceed $200 million per annum and the scale of environmental damage in natural ecosystems is huge. Currently, control of Phytophthora diseases la ....Biogenesis of secretory organelles and the function of adhesins secreted during the establishment of plant disease. Many agriculturally important crops and Australian native plants are susceptible to diseases caused by species of Phytophthora, a fungus-like organism that lives in the soil. Economic losses due to Phytophthora diseases are estimated to exceed $200 million per annum and the scale of environmental damage in natural ecosystems is huge. Currently, control of Phytophthora diseases largely depends on a very small number of effective chemicals and there is an imminent risk of the development of pathogen resistance. This research will increase our understanding of how Phytophthora spores infect host plants and will identify suitable targets for the development of novel, environmentally safe chemicals that inhibit disease development.Read moreRead less
Psyllids as biosecurity threats to plantation and native eucalypts in Australia and internationally. Psyllids are tiny cicada-like insects that are economic pests of forestry and horticulture because the saliva injected when feeding causes leaf death and some vector plant diseases. Advanced technologies and procedures will be used to determine what makes plants susceptible to psyllids and to improve Australian preparedness ahead of an incursion.
Development of environmentally-friendly bioinsecticides for control of Australian crop pests. Insect pests cause over $3 billion of damage each year to Australian crops. Current insecticides are becoming less effective, and they often have adverse environmental impacts. This project aims to develop a new generation of environmentally-friendly insecticides that can be used to control insect pests on farms and around the home and garden.