Molecular analysis of photosynthetically-linked, active CO2 uptake and CO2 signal transduction by cyanobacteria (blue-green algae). Cyanobacteria (blue-green algae) have evolved a very efficient means of capturing and concentrating CO2 for photosynthetic fixation into sugars, the basic building blocks for cell growth. This process is dependent on the operation of several unique, active uptake systems for CO2 and HCO3-, with their genetic expression regulated by CO2 supply. This proposal will cap ....Molecular analysis of photosynthetically-linked, active CO2 uptake and CO2 signal transduction by cyanobacteria (blue-green algae). Cyanobacteria (blue-green algae) have evolved a very efficient means of capturing and concentrating CO2 for photosynthetic fixation into sugars, the basic building blocks for cell growth. This process is dependent on the operation of several unique, active uptake systems for CO2 and HCO3-, with their genetic expression regulated by CO2 supply. This proposal will capitalize on our progress in describing the functional genetics of this process and aims to elucidate the mechanism of active CO2 uptake and the way that cells sense the ambient CO2 concentration. The information gained is likely to be useful for designing improved crops.Read moreRead less
Photosynthetically active bicarbonate transporters from cyanobacteria & their rational redesign for application in engineered crops that use less water. Marine blue-green algae are critical components of global primary productivity and fisheries productivity but CO2 acquisition processes in these organisms are poorly understood. Our aim is to determine the protein structure and regulatory controls present in two classes of cyanobacterial bicarbonate transporters that are required for efficient p ....Photosynthetically active bicarbonate transporters from cyanobacteria & their rational redesign for application in engineered crops that use less water. Marine blue-green algae are critical components of global primary productivity and fisheries productivity but CO2 acquisition processes in these organisms are poorly understood. Our aim is to determine the protein structure and regulatory controls present in two classes of cyanobacterial bicarbonate transporters that are required for efficient photosynthesis. This information is now critical to the our goal of redesigning these bicarbonate transporters so they will be functional in plants, thereby contributing to the applied objective of engineering crop plants that could produce good grain yields with reduced water requirements.Read moreRead less
Linkage Infrastructure, Equipment And Facilities - Grant ID: LE0989861
Funder
Australian Research Council
Funding Amount
$650,000.00
Summary
Electron Microscopes for Nanometer-Scale Imaging/Microanalysis in the Materials, Biological, Physical, Engineering and Chemical Sciences. Electron microscopes have contributed to many of the most significant discoveries and technological advances of the last 6 decades. High resolution transmission and scanning electron microscopes have become essential research infrastructure in internationally competitive materials science, biology, bio-medical science, physics, chemistry and a broad range of e ....Electron Microscopes for Nanometer-Scale Imaging/Microanalysis in the Materials, Biological, Physical, Engineering and Chemical Sciences. Electron microscopes have contributed to many of the most significant discoveries and technological advances of the last 6 decades. High resolution transmission and scanning electron microscopes have become essential research infrastructure in internationally competitive materials science, biology, bio-medical science, physics, chemistry and a broad range of engineering disciplines. This capability is not currently available in the Newcastle, Hunter, Central and Lower North Coast and New England regions. This proposal is aimed at satisfying the considerable demand for high resolution microscopy in these areas leading to high quality research outcomes across 3 National Research Priorities and a strong contribution to research training.Read moreRead less
Evolution of halophytes: a phyloinformatic approach to understanding and exploiting the traits underlying salt-tolerance in plants. Salinity is an increasing burden on the Australian economy & environment, with >2 million ha of salt-affected land, at an annual cost to agriculture over $187 million. One solution is to exploit naturally salt-tolerant plants to increase productive agricultural land and restore salt-affected environments. To do this, we must increase basic knowledge of the diversity ....Evolution of halophytes: a phyloinformatic approach to understanding and exploiting the traits underlying salt-tolerance in plants. Salinity is an increasing burden on the Australian economy & environment, with >2 million ha of salt-affected land, at an annual cost to agriculture over $187 million. One solution is to exploit naturally salt-tolerant plants to increase productive agricultural land and restore salt-affected environments. To do this, we must increase basic knowledge of the diversity & distribution of salt-tolerance. This project is the first to use DNA sequences from thousands of species to understand the evolution of salt-tolerance in order to provide the foundation for the development of new crop varieties, selection of species that can be developed for bioremediation, and identification of traits that will be profitable targets for breeding programs. Read moreRead less
Using defined biotic and abiotic stimuli to dissect patterns of gene expression and protein accumulation that specify root architecture. Root morphogenesis is fundamental to agriculture and valuable for investigating the informational networks of genes, proteins and metabolites that control root growth and plant development. Root systems vary widely both within and between species. Root morphology is directed by a basic genetic program that is influenced by environmental factors to provide an e ....Using defined biotic and abiotic stimuli to dissect patterns of gene expression and protein accumulation that specify root architecture. Root morphogenesis is fundamental to agriculture and valuable for investigating the informational networks of genes, proteins and metabolites that control root growth and plant development. Root systems vary widely both within and between species. Root morphology is directed by a basic genetic program that is influenced by environmental factors to provide an enormous "phenotypic plasticity". This project will use two model plant systems to investigate how different external signals are "translated" by the plant into different developmental regimes. This knowledge is crucial to understanding how the plasticity of root development is modulated in response to changing environmental factors.Read moreRead less
Active bicarbonate transporters from cyanobacteria: physiological properties, genetic regulation, and introduction into plants for crop improvement. An intriguing set of membrane transport proteins that accumulate bicarbonate into marine cyanobacterial cells will be investigated. These proteins support the crucial process of photosynthetic carbon dioxide fixation in marine cyanobacteria (blue-green algae), which are major contributors to global carbon dioxide sequestration and form one of the f ....Active bicarbonate transporters from cyanobacteria: physiological properties, genetic regulation, and introduction into plants for crop improvement. An intriguing set of membrane transport proteins that accumulate bicarbonate into marine cyanobacterial cells will be investigated. These proteins support the crucial process of photosynthetic carbon dioxide fixation in marine cyanobacteria (blue-green algae), which are major contributors to global carbon dioxide sequestration and form one of the foundations of the marine food web. These bicarbonate "transporters" will also be transferred into a model plant system to test whether the efficiency of photosynthesis can be improved, with corresponding gains in the water-use efficiency of these plants. If successful this technology will have profound global implications for improving crop production in semi-arid areas.Read moreRead less
Carbon uptake and water use by plants: is there pre-stomatal control? Society relies on mathematical descriptions of climate change, weather forecasting, crop performance, and other processes in which the control of carbon uptake and water loss by plants forms a basic element. Scientists also use the same element in ascribing sources and sinks of carbon dioxide (CO2), describing vegetation, hydrological and ecological processes. A key physiological assumption in this element is now in doubt and ....Carbon uptake and water use by plants: is there pre-stomatal control? Society relies on mathematical descriptions of climate change, weather forecasting, crop performance, and other processes in which the control of carbon uptake and water loss by plants forms a basic element. Scientists also use the same element in ascribing sources and sinks of carbon dioxide (CO2), describing vegetation, hydrological and ecological processes. A key physiological assumption in this element is now in doubt and we will test it rigorously and if necessary provide a robust alternative. We will do this by developing a novel 'window' on intact leaf functioning that will reveal the concentration of water vapour and other gases inside leaves.Read moreRead less
Linkage Infrastructure, Equipment And Facilities - Grant ID: LE0989071
Funder
Australian Research Council
Funding Amount
$600,000.00
Summary
Phytosphere: new facilities for controlled manipulation of effects of climate change & airborne pollutants on disease epidemiology & plant performance. Western Australia is home to a range of world-leading plant science research groups. Establishing a world-class multi-purpose phytosphere facility in WA will enable these groups to remain at the forefront of their research fields and continue to attract high-profile international scientists and students. Such a facility will result in significant ....Phytosphere: new facilities for controlled manipulation of effects of climate change & airborne pollutants on disease epidemiology & plant performance. Western Australia is home to a range of world-leading plant science research groups. Establishing a world-class multi-purpose phytosphere facility in WA will enable these groups to remain at the forefront of their research fields and continue to attract high-profile international scientists and students. Such a facility will result in significant advancement of our understanding of the impact of climate change on plants through biotic stresses (e.g., disease epidemiology, plant-pathogen interactions) and in interaction with abiotic variables (e.g., CO2 concentrations, temperature, light intensity, humidity, moisture stress, airborne pollutants such as SO2), and allow crop yield optimisation in future environments.Read moreRead less
Physiological and molecular controls of plant transpiration efficiency: investigating the role of the ERECTA gene. Water is the single most limiting factor in agriculture and the world's supply of fresh water is diminishing, the greatest fraction of total water use being by agriculture. Progress in water-use efficiency will have social value, and this program should help us to achieve it. Our progress in this area is already one of the most successful of 'bottom-up' approaches - in the sense of ....Physiological and molecular controls of plant transpiration efficiency: investigating the role of the ERECTA gene. Water is the single most limiting factor in agriculture and the world's supply of fresh water is diminishing, the greatest fraction of total water use being by agriculture. Progress in water-use efficiency will have social value, and this program should help us to achieve it. Our progress in this area is already one of the most successful of 'bottom-up' approaches - in the sense of transferring knowledge from biochemistry and biophysics to breeding and agronomy, as CSIRO now has a successful wheat breeding program based on this earlier work of ours. Now that we have discovered a gene that controls water-use efficiency at the leaf level, we wish to see how the gene works, and how it affects mineral nutrition of leaves.Read moreRead less
Proteome Analysis of Plant Response Pathways to Microbial Signals in the Model Legume, Medicago truncatula. This project will investigate plant responses to soil microbes in the model legume, Medicago truncatula, to provide fundamental information needed to design crops with improved abilities to interact beneficially with soil microbes. Plant development and performance are significantly influenced by soil microbes, but it is largely unknown how the information contained in microbial signalling ....Proteome Analysis of Plant Response Pathways to Microbial Signals in the Model Legume, Medicago truncatula. This project will investigate plant responses to soil microbes in the model legume, Medicago truncatula, to provide fundamental information needed to design crops with improved abilities to interact beneficially with soil microbes. Plant development and performance are significantly influenced by soil microbes, but it is largely unknown how the information contained in microbial signalling molecules is relayed to plants. Proteome analysis and immunocytochemistry will be combined to identify and localise differentially expressed proteins in roots treated with specific microbial signal molecules. Annotated Proteome databases will be generated to strengthen and complement an international project on M. truncatula genome analysis.Read moreRead less