Discovery Early Career Researcher Award - Grant ID: DE170100151
Funder
Australian Research Council
Funding Amount
$372,000.00
Summary
Enhancing resistance to wheat stripe rust disease. This project aims to investigate why wheat succumbs to stripe rust fungus, a grave threat to global wheat production. Wheat is the primary agricultural and revenue crop of Australia, cultivated since early European settlement. Severe disease epidemics arise when the fast evolving rust pathogen breaks down host plant genetic resistance. This project will investigate the molecular mechanisms of host-pathogen recognition and the consequences of pat ....Enhancing resistance to wheat stripe rust disease. This project aims to investigate why wheat succumbs to stripe rust fungus, a grave threat to global wheat production. Wheat is the primary agricultural and revenue crop of Australia, cultivated since early European settlement. Severe disease epidemics arise when the fast evolving rust pathogen breaks down host plant genetic resistance. This project will investigate the molecular mechanisms of host-pathogen recognition and the consequences of pathogen variation to determine the causes of resistance breakdown. The expected outcome is robust rust-resistant wheat cultivars to maintain global food security.Read moreRead less
Mediator: a new concept for controlled gene expression in plant biotechnology. The Mediator protein complex is a new control point for the activation of all genes in higher organisms and the purpose of this project is to understand how three Mediator subunits regulate disease resistance in plants. The outcomes provide a new concept to direct natural gene expression towards robust crop plants able to cope with climatic variations.
The other half of the G-protein story: Functional analysis of the plant G-protein gamma subunits. It is now established that G-proteins are involved in the transduction of a number of important processes in plants (Cell division, stomata control, defence, light perception, etc). Nevertheless the data accumulated to date is based on the study of one of the two subunits (alpha) of the G-proteins. Almost nothing is known about the role of the second (and independent) subunit: beta-gamma. We will st ....The other half of the G-protein story: Functional analysis of the plant G-protein gamma subunits. It is now established that G-proteins are involved in the transduction of a number of important processes in plants (Cell division, stomata control, defence, light perception, etc). Nevertheless the data accumulated to date is based on the study of one of the two subunits (alpha) of the G-proteins. Almost nothing is known about the role of the second (and independent) subunit: beta-gamma. We will study for the first time the role of the beta-gamma subunit in plants. We will use a comprehensive approach combining biochemical, physiological, phenotypic, genomic and proteomic studies.Read moreRead less
A novel role for phytochrome in dormancy release inhibition. Seed dormancy contributes to the persistence of weeds in agriculture by enabling seeds to remain viable in the soil for many years, and is a major reason why annual ryegrass (Lolium rigidum) has become the most economically damaging weed in Australian agriculture. Recently we discovered a new way to control dormancy release and germination in these seeds. This project to identify the changes occurring within the seeds during dormancy r ....A novel role for phytochrome in dormancy release inhibition. Seed dormancy contributes to the persistence of weeds in agriculture by enabling seeds to remain viable in the soil for many years, and is a major reason why annual ryegrass (Lolium rigidum) has become the most economically damaging weed in Australian agriculture. Recently we discovered a new way to control dormancy release and germination in these seeds. This project to identify the changes occurring within the seeds during dormancy release will underpin our efforts to manipulate emergence timing in order to improve the efficacy of current weed control practices and contribute to sustainable farming systems.Read moreRead less
Linkage Infrastructure, Equipment And Facilities - Grant ID: LE0347105
Funder
Australian Research Council
Funding Amount
$100,000.00
Summary
Algal Identification - Culturing Facility of North Queensland (NQAIF). NQAIF, a regionally integrated tropical algal identification - culturing facility; the first of its kind in the world, will establish and house tropical phytoplankton cultures to enable new and enhance existing experimental research on marine and freshwater tropical phytoplankton under controlled environmental conditions. The facility will establish world-class expertise in North Queensland and create the knowledge base for t ....Algal Identification - Culturing Facility of North Queensland (NQAIF). NQAIF, a regionally integrated tropical algal identification - culturing facility; the first of its kind in the world, will establish and house tropical phytoplankton cultures to enable new and enhance existing experimental research on marine and freshwater tropical phytoplankton under controlled environmental conditions. The facility will establish world-class expertise in North Queensland and create the knowledge base for the Australasian Pacific regions. NQAIF will significantly boost high quality national and international collaborative links in the research areas of tropical water quality; phytoplankton toxicity; the search for novel bioactive compounds; sustainable tropical aquaculture and coral bleaching.Read moreRead less
Discovering the activity of novel CLE peptide hormones that regulate legume nodulation. This project aims to functionally characterise novel peptide hormones that regulate the number of nitrogen-fixing root nodules that legumes form. Findings will enhance the current nodulation model and could help to alleviate our reliance on expensive, often polluting, nitrogen-fertilisers by helping to optimise the nodulation process in agriculture.
Discovery of the systemic regulator of legume nodulation. This project aims to discover the novel, shoot-derived factor that legumes produce to regulate the number of nitrogen-fixing root nodules they form. Outcomes will enhance the current nodulation model and could help optimise the process in agriculture, which would help alleviate current reliance on nitrogen-fertilisers that are expensive and pollute.
Seafood safety: high throughput diagnostics for ciguatoxin risk assessment. This project aims to develop a novel, high throughput platform for rapidly assessing ciguatoxins. Species of the marine microalgae Gambierdiscus produce ciguatoxins, which accumulate in fish through marine food chains to cause the often debilitating human illness called ciguatera fish poisoning. Ciiguatera fish poisoning is a growing and substantial risk for the $2.2 billion Australian commercial fishing industry. This s ....Seafood safety: high throughput diagnostics for ciguatoxin risk assessment. This project aims to develop a novel, high throughput platform for rapidly assessing ciguatoxins. Species of the marine microalgae Gambierdiscus produce ciguatoxins, which accumulate in fish through marine food chains to cause the often debilitating human illness called ciguatera fish poisoning. Ciiguatera fish poisoning is a growing and substantial risk for the $2.2 billion Australian commercial fishing industry. This serious illness is increasingly impacting more southerly areas of Australia due to environmental changes. The outcomes of this project include new knowledge of the risk of ciguatoxins at Australian 'hot spot' sites, extensively field tested methods for detecting Gambierdiscus and ciguatoxins in situ and key data to inform policy to safeguard the seafood industry and consumers.
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My enemy’s enemy is my friend: The genetics of major plant pathogen killers. Fungi are devastating agents of crop diseases. These plant pathogens, in turn, are often parasitized by other fungi in the field. The project will focus on such interactions between powdery mildews, important pathogens of many crops and wild plants, and their common fungal parasites (Ampelomyces spp.) that have already been utilised as
biocontrol agents in crop protection. Genetic and genomic tools will be used to deter ....My enemy’s enemy is my friend: The genetics of major plant pathogen killers. Fungi are devastating agents of crop diseases. These plant pathogens, in turn, are often parasitized by other fungi in the field. The project will focus on such interactions between powdery mildews, important pathogens of many crops and wild plants, and their common fungal parasites (Ampelomyces spp.) that have already been utilised as
biocontrol agents in crop protection. Genetic and genomic tools will be used to determine if these parasites evolved by switching host from plants to plant pathogens. The project has the potential to make a ground-breaking discovery in this field, and also establish the starting point for new innovative methods to protect a wide diversity
of crops using these fungi or specific compounds derived from them.Read moreRead less
ARC Centre of Excellence in Plant Cell Wall Biology. The ARC Centre for Plant Cell Wall Biology will define the regulatory mechanisms that control molecular, enzymic and cellular processes involved in the synthesis, deposition, re-modelling and depolymerisation of cell wall polysaccharides of cereals and grasses. Plant cell walls represent the world's largest renewable carbon resource, but the regulatory mechanisms responsible for their synthesis and assembly are not understood. Key distinguishi ....ARC Centre of Excellence in Plant Cell Wall Biology. The ARC Centre for Plant Cell Wall Biology will define the regulatory mechanisms that control molecular, enzymic and cellular processes involved in the synthesis, deposition, re-modelling and depolymerisation of cell wall polysaccharides of cereals and grasses. Plant cell walls represent the world's largest renewable carbon resource, but the regulatory mechanisms responsible for their synthesis and assembly are not understood. Key distinguishing features of the Centre will be the international, integrative, and multidisciplinary approach towards addressing major questions in plant biology, its strategy to leverage ARC funding, and its linkages with potential national and international end-users of the fundamental scientific discoveries.Read moreRead less