Linkage Infrastructure, Equipment And Facilities - Grant ID: LE0453608
Funder
Australian Research Council
Funding Amount
$579,230.00
Summary
Multifunctional confocal laser scanning microscope with time resolved and two photon imaging and fluorescence correlation capabilities. We seek to establish an Australian first confocal laser scanning microscope with time resolved imaging and fluorescence correlation spectroscopy capabilities. Its advantages include ultrasensitive detection of weak fluorescent emissions against high autofluorescent background by using fluorescence lifetime signatures, with over three orders of magnitude discrimi ....Multifunctional confocal laser scanning microscope with time resolved and two photon imaging and fluorescence correlation capabilities. We seek to establish an Australian first confocal laser scanning microscope with time resolved imaging and fluorescence correlation spectroscopy capabilities. Its advantages include ultrasensitive detection of weak fluorescent emissions against high autofluorescent background by using fluorescence lifetime signatures, with over three orders of magnitude discrimination improvement. The system will also be able to monitor binding of single molecules. These techniques will open new and exciting avenues for interdisciplinary research at the frontier between biological and physical sciences. The microscope will operate within an existing multi-user Optical Characterisation Facility supporting research of an established network of scientists in the Sydney area.Read moreRead less
Genetic control of floral architecture. Different flowers have different designs, and so the design must ultimately be controlled by genes. We have identified a gene that keeps sepals separate, and promotes the initiation of petals. We think it does this by a novel growth suppression mechanism, and will now deduce its molecular and cellular basis. This will help maintain Australia's strength in fundamental plant biology. Also, by understanding how sepals and petals arise in a model laboratory sp ....Genetic control of floral architecture. Different flowers have different designs, and so the design must ultimately be controlled by genes. We have identified a gene that keeps sepals separate, and promotes the initiation of petals. We think it does this by a novel growth suppression mechanism, and will now deduce its molecular and cellular basis. This will help maintain Australia's strength in fundamental plant biology. Also, by understanding how sepals and petals arise in a model laboratory species, we can generalise for many species, including economic plants. Thus it may be possible to make designer crops through targeted genetic changes to their floral structure.Read moreRead less
Control of plant organ development by the PETAL LOSS gene of Arabidopsis. We have discovered a new gene in the model laboratory plant Arabidopsis thaliana that is involved in sepal and petal development. It encodes a transcription factor that apparently acts by repressing growth in the inter-sepal zone of flowers where petals arise. We now aim to determine how this growth suppression occurs, and whether it extends to leaves where the gene is also expressed. Control of the initiation and sculptur ....Control of plant organ development by the PETAL LOSS gene of Arabidopsis. We have discovered a new gene in the model laboratory plant Arabidopsis thaliana that is involved in sepal and petal development. It encodes a transcription factor that apparently acts by repressing growth in the inter-sepal zone of flowers where petals arise. We now aim to determine how this growth suppression occurs, and whether it extends to leaves where the gene is also expressed. Control of the initiation and sculpturing of plant organs by site-specific inhibition of growth is a newly discovered mechanism that may be useful in manipulating plant architecture.Read moreRead less
Understanding how auxin and dorsoventral patterning are coordinated in plants. This study will help reveal for the first time how the outgrowth of leaves, flowers and floral organs is coordinated by tissue patterning genes and the plant growth hormone auxin. All plants grow in this way, and our findings, made using a model laboratory plant, will be applicable to crop species as well. Thus we will both expand our core knowledge of how multicellular organisms are constructed, and also generate pos ....Understanding how auxin and dorsoventral patterning are coordinated in plants. This study will help reveal for the first time how the outgrowth of leaves, flowers and floral organs is coordinated by tissue patterning genes and the plant growth hormone auxin. All plants grow in this way, and our findings, made using a model laboratory plant, will be applicable to crop species as well. Thus we will both expand our core knowledge of how multicellular organisms are constructed, and also generate possibilities for modifying the patterns of leaf and flower development in agricultural and horticultural species. Crops with larger leaves, or flowers of different structure, may result.Read moreRead less
Linkage Infrastructure, Equipment And Facilities - Grant ID: LE0668417
Funder
Australian Research Council
Funding Amount
$108,667.00
Summary
New-Generation Near Infrared Spectrometer for Ecological Research. Sustainable use of the natural resources of Australia depends on studies that define how ecological communities respond to disturbance and change. An important part of this is understanding how the composition of plants and animals such as insects, change reflecting for example, increased concentrations of toxins. However making large numbers of analyses is expensive and slow. Near infrared spectroscopy is a non-destructive an ....New-Generation Near Infrared Spectrometer for Ecological Research. Sustainable use of the natural resources of Australia depends on studies that define how ecological communities respond to disturbance and change. An important part of this is understanding how the composition of plants and animals such as insects, change reflecting for example, increased concentrations of toxins. However making large numbers of analyses is expensive and slow. Near infrared spectroscopy is a non-destructive analytical method that allows the composition of materials to be deduced based on their interaction with light. Adopting these methods in ecology will allow many samples to be analysed quickly and cheaply and also stop waste and duplication of analytical work.Read moreRead less
ARC Research Network for Advanced Materials. Materials science/engineering is decidedly interdisciplinary, covering all science and impacting on all manufacturing industry. This network will promote interactions that do not usually occur between materials researchers and students across Australia and internationally from diverse disciplines. The scope is broadly based on advanced materials production, processing and properties but focused in four areas, involving: i) innovative structural/functi ....ARC Research Network for Advanced Materials. Materials science/engineering is decidedly interdisciplinary, covering all science and impacting on all manufacturing industry. This network will promote interactions that do not usually occur between materials researchers and students across Australia and internationally from diverse disciplines. The scope is broadly based on advanced materials production, processing and properties but focused in four areas, involving: i) innovative structural/functional materials, ii) high-tech IT/communications/sensing materials, iii) materials solutions for manufacturing, iv) materials for a sustainable Australia, and v) emerging materials technologies. Key programs will promote interdisciplinary workshops and early career researcher interactions.Read moreRead less
Improving plant productivity and human health using next generation biotechnology approaches. Both medical and plant sciences face similar technological problems in harnessing the power of modern DNA sequencing for accelerating the pace of beneficial gene function discovery. Plant and animal researchers will collaborate in this program to meet this common challenge. The research outcomes envisaged in this proposal will benefit human health by enabling more rapid discovery of genes related to obe ....Improving plant productivity and human health using next generation biotechnology approaches. Both medical and plant sciences face similar technological problems in harnessing the power of modern DNA sequencing for accelerating the pace of beneficial gene function discovery. Plant and animal researchers will collaborate in this program to meet this common challenge. The research outcomes envisaged in this proposal will benefit human health by enabling more rapid discovery of genes related to obesity, immunity, fertility, neurological function and cancer. In the plant sphere, the outcomes will shed new light on plant functions related to plant energy metabolism, vitamin biosynthesis drought tolerance and water use by crops. The research will benefit both human health and agricultural food production and quality.Read moreRead less
Special Research Initiatives - Grant ID: SR0354512
Funder
Australian Research Council
Funding Amount
$30,000.00
Summary
Network Asia: Maximizing Australia's National Capacity in Inter-Disciplinary Research on Asia. Australia has an international reputation for innovative and high impact research into the states, societies, and economies of Asia.
The Initiative will survey the volume, range, impact, and international status of Asian area research in Australia, identify themes with high potential for achieving significant outcomes through transnational research and research-training, and develop a strategy for m ....Network Asia: Maximizing Australia's National Capacity in Inter-Disciplinary Research on Asia. Australia has an international reputation for innovative and high impact research into the states, societies, and economies of Asia.
The Initiative will survey the volume, range, impact, and international status of Asian area research in Australia, identify themes with high potential for achieving significant outcomes through transnational research and research-training, and develop a strategy for maximizing national research capacity in targeted areas through a national inter-disciplinary network for Asia-area research - Network Asia.
Outcomes include a published report on the state of the field and a strategic plan for a viable and sustainable research network.
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Linkage Infrastructure, Equipment And Facilities - Grant ID: LE0775726
Funder
Australian Research Council
Funding Amount
$306,270.00
Summary
Australian Mirror of the UCSC Genome Database and Browser. Modern medical, biological, agricultural, and environmental research and industries are being transformed by access to genomic information that details the DNA sequence of various species, as well as of different strains and individuals within populations. This information is being generated at an exponentially increasing speed, and requires large computational resources. This facility will provide Australian researchers, R&D organizati ....Australian Mirror of the UCSC Genome Database and Browser. Modern medical, biological, agricultural, and environmental research and industries are being transformed by access to genomic information that details the DNA sequence of various species, as well as of different strains and individuals within populations. This information is being generated at an exponentially increasing speed, and requires large computational resources. This facility will provide Australian researchers, R&D organizations and industry with state-of-the-art genomic data storage and analysis capability, which will permit both public and proprietary access, and accelerate Australian research and development in genetic medicine, pharmaceuticals, animal breeding and biodiversity.Read moreRead less