Safeguarding Honeybees: Increasing parasite treatment effectiveness using nanotechnology. There is increasing concern about the exposure of honeybees to pesticides used to control both agricultural pests and diseases. Emerging reports indicate that these chemicals substantially harm bees and therefore contribute to the dramatic declines reported. A widespread bee pathogen, Nosema, will be used to directly quantify the effectiveness of commercially used pesticides on both parasite and honeybee vi ....Safeguarding Honeybees: Increasing parasite treatment effectiveness using nanotechnology. There is increasing concern about the exposure of honeybees to pesticides used to control both agricultural pests and diseases. Emerging reports indicate that these chemicals substantially harm bees and therefore contribute to the dramatic declines reported. A widespread bee pathogen, Nosema, will be used to directly quantify the effectiveness of commercially used pesticides on both parasite and honeybee viability. Furthermore, state-of-the-art nanotechnology will be used to develop benign treatments with enhanced effectiveness and minimal dosage/exposure to the bees. Outcomes of this project can have major impact on future parasite management in commercial honeybees.Read moreRead less
Phylogeography and host specificity of stemborer parasitoids: essential components for the pre-emptive biocontrol of sugarcane pests in Australia. Stemboring insects cause huge economic losses to the sugar industry world-wide but fortunately these pests are largely absent from Australia, in part because quarantine measures have prevented their introduction. However, given their proximity, incursion of foreign stemborers from Asia pose a serious threat to Australian sugarcane. To prepare effectiv ....Phylogeography and host specificity of stemborer parasitoids: essential components for the pre-emptive biocontrol of sugarcane pests in Australia. Stemboring insects cause huge economic losses to the sugar industry world-wide but fortunately these pests are largely absent from Australia, in part because quarantine measures have prevented their introduction. However, given their proximity, incursion of foreign stemborers from Asia pose a serious threat to Australian sugarcane. To prepare effective pest management plans that can be adopted promptly in a worst-case scenario, this study will 1) develop molecular diagnostic tools to select wasp biocontrol agents that are suitable for the control of specific foreign stemborer pests, and 2) evaluate whether any Australian native wasps have the ability to kill foreign stemborers. Read moreRead less
Systematics and coevolution of insect herbivores on casuarinas: testing phylogenetic congruence for selection of plant biocontrol agents. The casuarinas (sheoaks) are a significant component of the Australian floral landscape. Associated with them are many co-evolved insects, some of which may prove useful as biocontrol agents against Casuarina weeds. Using morphological taxonomy combined with a novel molecular approach, we will compare the co-evolution of psyllids, scale and gall insects, and w ....Systematics and coevolution of insect herbivores on casuarinas: testing phylogenetic congruence for selection of plant biocontrol agents. The casuarinas (sheoaks) are a significant component of the Australian floral landscape. Associated with them are many co-evolved insects, some of which may prove useful as biocontrol agents against Casuarina weeds. Using morphological taxonomy combined with a novel molecular approach, we will compare the co-evolution of psyllids, scale and gall insects, and weevils with that of the casuarinas. This project will have significant implications for conservation and regeneration of casuarinas in the Australian context and the selection of specific biocontrol agents against casuarinas as environmental weeds.Read moreRead less
Evolution of microgastroid parasitic wasps and their symbiotic viruses - a major group of biological control agents. Microgastroid wasps represent a huge assemblage of species that are parasitic in lepidopteran (moth) larvae and are a major group of biological control agents of agricultural pests. They also possess a unique association with a group of symbiotic viruses that when introduced into a host, block its immune response. This project will elucidate the evolutionary relationships among ....Evolution of microgastroid parasitic wasps and their symbiotic viruses - a major group of biological control agents. Microgastroid wasps represent a huge assemblage of species that are parasitic in lepidopteran (moth) larvae and are a major group of biological control agents of agricultural pests. They also possess a unique association with a group of symbiotic viruses that when introduced into a host, block its immune response. This project will elucidate the evolutionary relationships among wasps and viruses employing morphology, sequence data and information on mitochondrial genome organisation as a basis for investigating the level of cophylogeny between these partner organisms, and to provide a framework for studies on wasp-host interactions at a molecular level.Read moreRead less
Genetic variation in the Cotesia flavipes complex of parasitic wasps: towards the effective biological control of stem-borer pests. This project will determine the genetic variation among world populations of the parasitic wasp Cotesia flavipes, as a prelude to the preemptive biological control of stemborer pests of sugarcane in Australia. These pests currently do not occur in Australia, but are found in crops across New Guinea and Indonesia, so that their incursion into Australia is highly lik ....Genetic variation in the Cotesia flavipes complex of parasitic wasps: towards the effective biological control of stem-borer pests. This project will determine the genetic variation among world populations of the parasitic wasp Cotesia flavipes, as a prelude to the preemptive biological control of stemborer pests of sugarcane in Australia. These pests currently do not occur in Australia, but are found in crops across New Guinea and Indonesia, so that their incursion into Australia is highly likely in the future. The results of this project will clarify the taxonomic status of C. flavipes-like species in Australia and provide the means, using molecular markers, to select host strains of this wasp suitable for the control of specific stemborer speciesRead moreRead less
Phylogeny and radiation of flatworm ectoparasites from marine fish using morphology and genetics, with novel approaches to identify pathogenic species. Fish flukes (flatworm parasites) with direct lifecycles can weaken and kill captive fish and threaten lucrative industries like finfish aquaculture and public aquaria in Australia and globally. Traditional approaches and molecular techniques will identify monogenean flukes in a family containing known pathogenic species distributed worldwide. K ....Phylogeny and radiation of flatworm ectoparasites from marine fish using morphology and genetics, with novel approaches to identify pathogenic species. Fish flukes (flatworm parasites) with direct lifecycles can weaken and kill captive fish and threaten lucrative industries like finfish aquaculture and public aquaria in Australia and globally. Traditional approaches and molecular techniques will identify monogenean flukes in a family containing known pathogenic species distributed worldwide. Knowledge of fish disease is paramount for quarantine, risk assessments for import/export and for managing pathogen outbreaks in aquaculture. Benefits include: economic/social improvements in regional/rural Australia where fish farms are expanding; international excellence and core research training in fish parasitology; profitable, exportable expertise; knowledge of endemic and shared pathogens.Read moreRead less
The puzzle of Metazoan life history evolution: are feeding larvae always primitive? Most marine animals have a complex life-cycles with alternating pelagic larvae and benthic adults. An theory about animal life-history evolution states that feeding larvae are always primitive and larval feeding is lost but not gained. This hypothesis is based in part on studies on the 'classical' trochophore of marine worms such as Serpulidae, a group with both feeding and non-feeding larvae. We intend to establ ....The puzzle of Metazoan life history evolution: are feeding larvae always primitive? Most marine animals have a complex life-cycles with alternating pelagic larvae and benthic adults. An theory about animal life-history evolution states that feeding larvae are always primitive and larval feeding is lost but not gained. This hypothesis is based in part on studies on the 'classical' trochophore of marine worms such as Serpulidae, a group with both feeding and non-feeding larvae. We intend to establish a detailed phylogeny for Serpulidae and assess the evolution of larvae in the group. If feeding larvae are shown to be secondary this will raise doubts about established theories of animal evolution.Read moreRead less
The evolution of multipartite mitochondrial genomes in the cyst-forming nematodes. The cyst-forming nematodes are a serious pest of agricultural crops throughout the world, attacking cereal, root and legume crops. Although sporadically recorded in Australia, they have not become established here. This project will characterize unique sequences from the noncoding portion of the mitochondrial genome of a range of cyst-forming nematodes, facilitating the development of molecular diagnostic screen ....The evolution of multipartite mitochondrial genomes in the cyst-forming nematodes. The cyst-forming nematodes are a serious pest of agricultural crops throughout the world, attacking cereal, root and legume crops. Although sporadically recorded in Australia, they have not become established here. This project will characterize unique sequences from the noncoding portion of the mitochondrial genome of a range of cyst-forming nematodes, facilitating the development of molecular diagnostic screening tools for these crop pests. This program will train a number of young scientists with skills in biotechnology, preparing them to join programs safeguarding our agricultural industries.Read moreRead less
Half a Genome is Better than None: The Evolution of Haplodiploidy in Mites. It is our normal experience that males and females are about equally common. We also expect both sexes to receive half their genes from each parent. In many successful animal groups, however, these normal expectations are not met: males are rare and have only half as many chromosomes as females (haplodiploidy) or are non-existent. We will investigate multiple origins of haplodiploid and all-female genetic systems in a ....Half a Genome is Better than None: The Evolution of Haplodiploidy in Mites. It is our normal experience that males and females are about equally common. We also expect both sexes to receive half their genes from each parent. In many successful animal groups, however, these normal expectations are not met: males are rare and have only half as many chromosomes as females (haplodiploidy) or are non-existent. We will investigate multiple origins of haplodiploid and all-female genetic systems in a group of mites that includes many useful biocontrol agents and important parasites. The implications of this research have both pure scientific merit and potential practical value in controlling the reproduction of pests.Read moreRead less
Linkage Infrastructure, Equipment And Facilities - Grant ID: LE150100083
Funder
Australian Research Council
Funding Amount
$540,000.00
Summary
A high throughput phenomics facility for pace of life traits in animals. A high throughput phenomics facility for pace of life traits in animals: This project seeks to create the first high-throughput phenomic facility for animals in Australia. The molecular revolution has brought unprecedented capacity to understand genetic variation. Genetic variation is now better understood and more easily and cheaply characterised than the physical traits that organisms exhibit. Linking phenotypic variation ....A high throughput phenomics facility for pace of life traits in animals. A high throughput phenomics facility for pace of life traits in animals: This project seeks to create the first high-throughput phenomic facility for animals in Australia. The molecular revolution has brought unprecedented capacity to understand genetic variation. Genetic variation is now better understood and more easily and cheaply characterised than the physical traits that organisms exhibit. Linking phenotypic variation to genetic variation represents the major challenge in harnessing the power of the biomolecular age. This facility will accommodate animals from marine, freshwater and terrestrial systems across a diverse array of phyla. It will allow Australian researchers to leverage advances in high throughput genomic technologies to address a major bottleneck in biology.Read moreRead less