Insecticide targets in the nervous system: Discovery and design for sustainable insect pest control. Insect pests impose massive costs in food production, in human health and in the wellbeing of our companion animals. Chemical insecticides remain a major weapon in the control of these pests, but the use of insecticides has some downsides. The way in which insecticides kill insects is poorly understood and insecticide usage has negative impacts in the environment – the persistence of chemical r ....Insecticide targets in the nervous system: Discovery and design for sustainable insect pest control. Insect pests impose massive costs in food production, in human health and in the wellbeing of our companion animals. Chemical insecticides remain a major weapon in the control of these pests, but the use of insecticides has some downsides. The way in which insecticides kill insects is poorly understood and insecticide usage has negative impacts in the environment – the persistence of chemical residues and the killing of beneficial insects along with the pests. Further, insects become resistant to insecticides, so pest control is lost. This proposed research seeks to identify the ‘achilles heal’ in insect pests and to target them with new generation insecticides to gain safe, effective and sustainable control.Read moreRead less
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
Investigating insect neuronal plasticity under genetic and chemical stress. This project aims to study receptors that translate chemical signals into electrical signals in animal brains. These receptors are targeted by insecticides used to control the major pests that afflict agriculture and domestic pets. The project aims to establish the functions of nicotinic acetylcholine receptors in several behaviours and in insecticide responsiveness in the model insect, Drosophila melanogaster, using mut ....Investigating insect neuronal plasticity under genetic and chemical stress. This project aims to study receptors that translate chemical signals into electrical signals in animal brains. These receptors are targeted by insecticides used to control the major pests that afflict agriculture and domestic pets. The project aims to establish the functions of nicotinic acetylcholine receptors in several behaviours and in insecticide responsiveness in the model insect, Drosophila melanogaster, using mutations that knock out the function of receptor subunits. Prior research has pointed to plasticity in the expression and transport of these receptors in response to genetic and environmental change. This project aims to identify the underlying mechanisms that provide the insect with resilience, to provide better options for pest control.Read moreRead less
Porous Mineral Formulations for Controlled-Release Applications. The controlled release of biologically active agents from host materials is a process that is used routinely in pharmaceuticals delivery but has received only limited attention in large-scale, low-cost areas such as the agrochemicals industry. Here we identify a number of rare tubular mineral phases as having great potential for low-cost controlled release. These little-studied minerals, for which high quality deposits exist in Aus ....Porous Mineral Formulations for Controlled-Release Applications. The controlled release of biologically active agents from host materials is a process that is used routinely in pharmaceuticals delivery but has received only limited attention in large-scale, low-cost areas such as the agrochemicals industry. Here we identify a number of rare tubular mineral phases as having great potential for low-cost controlled release. These little-studied minerals, for which high quality deposits exist in Australia, consist of hollow tubules of nanoscale dimension. This project involves the first ever studies of the kinetics of guest release from these fascinating hosts, and promises to generate important new technologies in agrochemical delivery.Read moreRead less
Novel Nano-Pesticides for Animal Healthcare. This project aims to develop a new nano-pesticide with improved safety and performance. Ticks and buffalo fly cause over $400 million each year in economic losses to the Australian livestock industry and are currently treated with highly toxic synthetic pesticides. Spinosad, a naturally derived pesticide with low environmental impact and low toxicity, will be loaded into silica hollow spheres which will improve adhesion to skin or hair and protect aga ....Novel Nano-Pesticides for Animal Healthcare. This project aims to develop a new nano-pesticide with improved safety and performance. Ticks and buffalo fly cause over $400 million each year in economic losses to the Australian livestock industry and are currently treated with highly toxic synthetic pesticides. Spinosad, a naturally derived pesticide with low environmental impact and low toxicity, will be loaded into silica hollow spheres which will improve adhesion to skin or hair and protect against ultraviolet degradation. The nano-spinosad pesticide is expected to have enhanced efficacy and effective duration in field conditions compared to conventional pesticides, significantly reducing the cost of pest control.Read moreRead less
Functional analysis of Bacillus thuringiensis crystal toxins. Pore-forming toxins, such as anthrax, hemolysin, cholera and diphtheria toxins, are among the most virulent microbial toxins, posing a threat to humans and lifestock. We are using a novel functional approach to test possible lectin and antimicrobial peptide functions of a typical and economically important pore-forming toxin, the crystal endotoxin from Bacillus thuringiensis, to examine why toxicity of the lectin-containing toxin is ....Functional analysis of Bacillus thuringiensis crystal toxins. Pore-forming toxins, such as anthrax, hemolysin, cholera and diphtheria toxins, are among the most virulent microbial toxins, posing a threat to humans and lifestock. We are using a novel functional approach to test possible lectin and antimicrobial peptide functions of a typical and economically important pore-forming toxin, the crystal endotoxin from Bacillus thuringiensis, to examine why toxicity of the lectin-containing toxin is restricted to invertebrates only, while the amphipathic peptide alone is also toxic to many vertebrate cells. The outcome of these experiments has important implications for the sustainable use of biopesticides and for the prevention and containment of infectious diseases.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
Development of environmentally-friendly insecticides for the Australian livestock industry. Many insects and other arthropods are serious pests of Australian livestock. Australian farmers spend about $300 million per annum on insecticides and acaricides, while Australian consumers spend more than $100 million annually on insecticides for use on pets and around the home and garden. Unfortunately, many of these arthropod pests have developed resistance to chemical insecticides. This aim of this re ....Development of environmentally-friendly insecticides for the Australian livestock industry. Many insects and other arthropods are serious pests of Australian livestock. Australian farmers spend about $300 million per annum on insecticides and acaricides, while Australian consumers spend more than $100 million annually on insecticides for use on pets and around the home and garden. Unfortunately, many of these arthropod pests have developed resistance to chemical insecticides. This aim of this research program is to develop a new generation of environmentally-friendly natural products that can be used to control arthropod pests on farms and around the home and garden.Read moreRead less
STRUCTURAL CHARACTERIZATION OF ACTIVE CONSTITUENTS IN PLANT EXTRACTS WITH POTENTIAL FOR THE CONTROL OF OVINE LICE AND PARASITIC WORMS. The control of lice and parasitic worms are two of the major problems currently confronting the Australian sheep industry. Several plant extracts utilized in traditional medicine have shown a remarkable efficacy in the control of these pests in humans. This project will investigate the sheep lousicidal and anthelmintic activity of a number of plants, and identif ....STRUCTURAL CHARACTERIZATION OF ACTIVE CONSTITUENTS IN PLANT EXTRACTS WITH POTENTIAL FOR THE CONTROL OF OVINE LICE AND PARASITIC WORMS. The control of lice and parasitic worms are two of the major problems currently confronting the Australian sheep industry. Several plant extracts utilized in traditional medicine have shown a remarkable efficacy in the control of these pests in humans. This project will investigate the sheep lousicidal and anthelmintic activity of a number of plants, and identify and chemically characterize the active constituents. This research will lead to the production of more environmentally friendly pest control methods and overcome problems of insecticidal resistance currently facing the industry.Read moreRead less
Peptidic spider toxins: a novel paradigm for control of insect pests. Many insects are serious pests of Australian crops, livestock, and pets. Australian farmers spend about $300 million per annum on insecticides and acaricides, while Australian consumers spend more than $100 million annually on insecticides for use around the home and garden, and on pets. Viruses disseminated by insects are also responsible for diseases such as dengue, Japanese encephalitis, and Ross River fever. Unfortunately, ....Peptidic spider toxins: a novel paradigm for control of insect pests. Many insects are serious pests of Australian crops, livestock, and pets. Australian farmers spend about $300 million per annum on insecticides and acaricides, while Australian consumers spend more than $100 million annually on insecticides for use around the home and garden, and on pets. Viruses disseminated by insects are also responsible for diseases such as dengue, Japanese encephalitis, and Ross River fever. Unfortunately, many of these insect pests have developed resistance to chemical insecticides. The aim of this research program is to develop a new generation of environmentally-friendly natural products and insect-resistant crops that can be used to control insect pests on farms and around the home and garden.Read moreRead less