Understanding how cells compact and segregate DNA in vertebrates. How a cell compacts and divides its DNA is still a major unanswered question in biology. This project will determine the way in which a cell compacts its DNA nearly ten thousand fold to allow the faithful and accurate segregation to daughter nuclei.
Links between DNA replication and chromosome end maintenance. This project aims to increase knowledge of the way in which cells maintain their genomes, including the ends of their chromosomes, to enable their own survival. The ends of chromosomes (telomeres) are essential for survival and proliferation of the cells of most organisms. This project aims to determine the molecular details of a recently discovered link between telomere maintenance and the way cells maintain the integrity of their ge ....Links between DNA replication and chromosome end maintenance. This project aims to increase knowledge of the way in which cells maintain their genomes, including the ends of their chromosomes, to enable their own survival. The ends of chromosomes (telomeres) are essential for survival and proliferation of the cells of most organisms. This project aims to determine the molecular details of a recently discovered link between telomere maintenance and the way cells maintain the integrity of their genome. This is likely to lead to increased understanding of the fundamental biological process of genome maintenance, representing a significant scientific advance. The project expects to have far-reaching implications for biotechnology applications that require the survival of cells.Read moreRead less
Structural domains of beta-tubulin and their role in microtubule dynamics and transport. This study aims to obtain a fundamental understanding of how the structural domains of the cytoskeletal protein beta-tubulin are involved in microtubule structures during cell division and vesicular transport. Using gene-editing technology and coupling this with cell biological approaches and high-resolution cell imaging will enable detailed analysis of the role of beta-tubulin domains in these important cel ....Structural domains of beta-tubulin and their role in microtubule dynamics and transport. This study aims to obtain a fundamental understanding of how the structural domains of the cytoskeletal protein beta-tubulin are involved in microtubule structures during cell division and vesicular transport. Using gene-editing technology and coupling this with cell biological approaches and high-resolution cell imaging will enable detailed analysis of the role of beta-tubulin domains in these important cellular processes. The outcomes will include fundamental new knowledge in cell biology and lead to the development of unique biological models that can be used to understand disease.Read moreRead less
Investigating the role of gene loops in regulating gene expression. The ability to identify functional variants in regulatory elements will have implications for researchers in multiple fields of biology, from molecular medicine to agriculture. Transfer of expertise and application of the knowledge generated by our research to such fields stands to improve diagnosis of disease predisposition and to improve quality of animal and plant products. These outcomes will benefit all Australians. This kn ....Investigating the role of gene loops in regulating gene expression. The ability to identify functional variants in regulatory elements will have implications for researchers in multiple fields of biology, from molecular medicine to agriculture. Transfer of expertise and application of the knowledge generated by our research to such fields stands to improve diagnosis of disease predisposition and to improve quality of animal and plant products. These outcomes will benefit all Australians. This knowledge will also improve the education of Australian University students as it contributes to the development of advanced curricula and access to more powerful research methods. In addition, the project will foster important collaborations between Australian researchers and those overseas.Read moreRead less
The Regulatory Network of Histone Methylating and Demethylating Enzymes. This project aims to discover how cells regulate histone methylation enzymes. This process ultimately affects which genes can be turned on or off inside cells; something which is central to growth and development in all animals, all plants and some microbes. Expected outcomes include new knowledge on the regulation of histone methylation, improved techniques for the study of this process and enhanced capacity for internatio ....The Regulatory Network of Histone Methylating and Demethylating Enzymes. This project aims to discover how cells regulate histone methylation enzymes. This process ultimately affects which genes can be turned on or off inside cells; something which is central to growth and development in all animals, all plants and some microbes. Expected outcomes include new knowledge on the regulation of histone methylation, improved techniques for the study of this process and enhanced capacity for international collaboration. New avenues for the artificial regulation of genes may also emerge for synthetic epigenetics. The project should provide significant new findings for the research community, generate research citations and contribute to a highly skilled workforce by the training of staff and students.
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Complexities of the mitochondrial transcriptome. This project aims to understand mitochondrial gene expression and energy production. Energy production is important for living things to grow and develop. In mammals, the mitochondria, the energy producing “powerhouses of the cell”, contain their own genetic assembly instructions. This project aims to understand these genetic instructions, revealing how genes control energy production. This project will characterise the genetic instructions, the m ....Complexities of the mitochondrial transcriptome. This project aims to understand mitochondrial gene expression and energy production. Energy production is important for living things to grow and develop. In mammals, the mitochondria, the energy producing “powerhouses of the cell”, contain their own genetic assembly instructions. This project aims to understand these genetic instructions, revealing how genes control energy production. This project will characterise the genetic instructions, the mitochondrial transcriptome and the proteins that control them. These advances are expected to provide a mechanistic understanding of how gene expression responds to changes in cellular energy demands. This knowledge will generate new biotechnological tools for Australian science and will have important long-term implications for improving agriculture and medicineRead moreRead less
Engineering the defence-vigour balance for increased crop yield. This project aims to investigate a novel hypothesis to increase seed yield and vigour. Translating from a model system it will test whether the deliberate inactivation of a gene in tomato and banana, by RNA interference or genome editing, enhances performance. A dysfunctional gene in the viral defence pathway of the model plant species N. benthamiana boosted its seed yield and vigour. This project will investigate the enhancement, ....Engineering the defence-vigour balance for increased crop yield. This project aims to investigate a novel hypothesis to increase seed yield and vigour. Translating from a model system it will test whether the deliberate inactivation of a gene in tomato and banana, by RNA interference or genome editing, enhances performance. A dysfunctional gene in the viral defence pathway of the model plant species N. benthamiana boosted its seed yield and vigour. This project will investigate the enhancement, determine the consequences to the plant's defences, measure the balance between defence and vigour, and examine the risk of disease to such yield-enhanced crops. This is a radical departure from conventional approaches to crop improvement but if successful would provide an additional solution to the problem of future food security.Read moreRead less
Recombination of mitochondrial genomes: what can we learn from chigger mites? This project will bring three benefits to Australia. First, it will enhance Australia's research capacity in the fields of organelle genomics and evolutionary biology. Second, it will yield highly skilled young researchers: a postdoctoral fellow (Shao), a PhD student and two BSc Honours students. Third, it will generate new knowledge about genome recombination in animal mitochondria. Recombination is a fundamental, yet ....Recombination of mitochondrial genomes: what can we learn from chigger mites? This project will bring three benefits to Australia. First, it will enhance Australia's research capacity in the fields of organelle genomics and evolutionary biology. Second, it will yield highly skilled young researchers: a postdoctoral fellow (Shao), a PhD student and two BSc Honours students. Third, it will generate new knowledge about genome recombination in animal mitochondria. Recombination is a fundamental, yet poorly understood issue in mitochondrial genomics and evolutionary biology. Knowledge from this project will also improve our understanding of other important issues that are associated with animal mitochondria; like the mechanisms of mitochondrial disease and ageing, and the evolution of modern humans and other animals.Read moreRead less
New models for the role of chromatin in controlling inducible gene expression. This proposal aims to test novel models of how packaging of DNA in the nucleus plays a fundamental role in gene expression. Understanding these concepts is important in the context of successful gene therapy where major hurdles need to be overcome. This work also has implications for somatic cell therapy since it is important to understand how genes are expressed in order to successfully reprogram cells. Both of these ....New models for the role of chromatin in controlling inducible gene expression. This proposal aims to test novel models of how packaging of DNA in the nucleus plays a fundamental role in gene expression. Understanding these concepts is important in the context of successful gene therapy where major hurdles need to be overcome. This work also has implications for somatic cell therapy since it is important to understand how genes are expressed in order to successfully reprogram cells. Both of these areas are important to the Biotechnology industry. Answering questions about higher order chromatin structure in gene transcription will provide cutting edge, innovative knowledge that will have international significance. Read moreRead less
Understanding how dynamic changes in chromatin composition control genome function. DNA is tightly packaged in eukaryotic cells as chromatin. Important genetic processes, such as transcription, require manipulation of chromatin structure to access the DNA. The cell sets up specialised chromatin structures to regulate these processes. Currently, precise molecular details of these specialised structures are limited. This project will push the envelope of an in vitro model chromatin system and dete ....Understanding how dynamic changes in chromatin composition control genome function. DNA is tightly packaged in eukaryotic cells as chromatin. Important genetic processes, such as transcription, require manipulation of chromatin structure to access the DNA. The cell sets up specialised chromatin structures to regulate these processes. Currently, precise molecular details of these specialised structures are limited. This project will push the envelope of an in vitro model chromatin system and determine the architecture of several chromatin states with unique functional implications inside the cell. This will unravel the molecular instructions that define how our genomes are organised, significantly advancing our knowledge of fundamental eukaryotic genome biology and paving the way for the future development of new tools and therapies.Read moreRead less