Spatio-temporal activation of genes in cells and mice. This project aims to develop novel genetic methods and instrumentation for the local, rapid and reversible activation of genes in cells and mice. This project expects to generate highly innovative light- and sound-based technologies that will permit to study living systems on the gene-level with unprecedented precision. Expected outcomes include new research and technology capacity to broadly address fundamental biological questions and to c ....Spatio-temporal activation of genes in cells and mice. This project aims to develop novel genetic methods and instrumentation for the local, rapid and reversible activation of genes in cells and mice. This project expects to generate highly innovative light- and sound-based technologies that will permit to study living systems on the gene-level with unprecedented precision. Expected outcomes include new research and technology capacity to broadly address fundamental biological questions and to create new applied processes. This project intends to provide significant benefits, such as enhanced knowledge generation, multidisciplinary training opportunities and patentable technologies.Read moreRead less
Transcription factor nuclear residency as a driver of gene expression. Persistently active proteins can stay in the nucleus to drive cell growth and prevent cell death. This project will define how one specific active protein can remain in the nucleus and regulate gene expression through the action of unique ribonucleic acid (RNA) molecules. The results will enable persistent gene activation to be manipulated in cancer.
Control points in nitrogen uptake: enhancing the response of cereals to nitrogen supply and demand. Vast amounts of nitrogen fertiliser are applied to cereal crops to maintain yields. By uncovering what limits nitrogen uptake in cereals, this project will provide the scientific basis for improving nitrogen use efficiency and decreasing fertiliser use, with significant economic and environmental benefits.
Physiology and genetics of barley grain germination in the malting and brewing industries. An international research team will provide new scientific information on barley grain germination. This detailed basic knowledge will be immediately applied in breeding programs that are aimed at improving malting and brewing quality in a commercial context. At the same time, the industry's carbon footprint will be significantly reduced.
Genetic control of spermatogenesis: defining the role of SOX3 in spermatogonial progenitor cells. The transcription factor (TF) SOX3 is a key regulator of neural stem/progenitor cells. Recently, this project has also shown that SOX3 is active in sperm progenitors (spermatogonia) and is required for spermatogenesis. Using our Sox3 KO mouse model and extensive expertise in spermatogonial cell culture, ChIP-seq technology and bioinformatics, this project will investigate crucial aspects of SOX3 fun ....Genetic control of spermatogenesis: defining the role of SOX3 in spermatogonial progenitor cells. The transcription factor (TF) SOX3 is a key regulator of neural stem/progenitor cells. Recently, this project has also shown that SOX3 is active in sperm progenitors (spermatogonia) and is required for spermatogenesis. Using our Sox3 KO mouse model and extensive expertise in spermatogonial cell culture, ChIP-seq technology and bioinformatics, this project will investigate crucial aspects of SOX3 function in the testes including stem versus progenitor cell activity and genome-wide target gene regulation. These studies will uncover the molecular and cellular mechanism by which SOX3 controls spermatogenesis and provide unique insight into how a single TF controls context-dependent differentiation in sperm versus brain progenitor cells.Read moreRead less
Linkage Infrastructure, Equipment And Facilities - Grant ID: LE0775503
Funder
Australian Research Council
Funding Amount
$255,000.00
Summary
Robotics for plant genomics: Increasing throughput in plant genetic analyses. Plant genomics has direct benefit to crop improvement, especially as focussed in the applicants' laboratories. Thus, the Australian agri-food sector will benefit substantially from the acceleration in plant functional genomics that will arise from the installation of the robotics equipment described in the current application, by both underpinning more applied research and also being used directly in crop improvement p ....Robotics for plant genomics: Increasing throughput in plant genetic analyses. Plant genomics has direct benefit to crop improvement, especially as focussed in the applicants' laboratories. Thus, the Australian agri-food sector will benefit substantially from the acceleration in plant functional genomics that will arise from the installation of the robotics equipment described in the current application, by both underpinning more applied research and also being used directly in crop improvement programs such as are based at the Waite Campus. The outputs will include crops with increased tolerance to biotic and abiotic stresses, a reduced dependence on chemical inputs such as fertilisers and improved food quality, with consequent benefits to the environment and human health and nutrition.Read moreRead less
Testing co-evolutionary processes driving venom diversity in tiger snakes. Testing co-evolutionary processes driving venom diversity in tiger snakes. This project aims to examine the geographic variation amongst tiger snakes in anatomy, ecology, and life history traits, and the relationship of these factors to venom toxins and production; and to evaluate the true pharmacological potential of tiger snake venom. This project will investigate the role of venom adaptation in long-term animal evoluti ....Testing co-evolutionary processes driving venom diversity in tiger snakes. Testing co-evolutionary processes driving venom diversity in tiger snakes. This project aims to examine the geographic variation amongst tiger snakes in anatomy, ecology, and life history traits, and the relationship of these factors to venom toxins and production; and to evaluate the true pharmacological potential of tiger snake venom. This project will investigate the role of venom adaptation in long-term animal evolution, by identifying rare venom transcripts involved in providing evolutionary potential for adaptation to environmental change. This is essential as continuing climatic and human-induced alteration of our environment affects southern Australia where many people live, work and interact with native wildlife. Anticipated outcomes are maximizing venom harvests and enhanced snakebite treatment capacity.Read moreRead less
Linkage Infrastructure, Equipment And Facilities - Grant ID: LE0561030
Funder
Australian Research Council
Funding Amount
$441,100.00
Summary
Developmental Imaging Facility. This application seeks to establish a facility to undertake expression profiling in vertebrate tissues on a genomic scale and at the highest resolution. Undertaking large scale projects of this nature requires specialised robotics and dedicated infrastructure for microscopy and tissue preparation. This facility will be the first of its type in Australia will permit researchers to perform genomic scale in situ screens, many as part of large international initiative ....Developmental Imaging Facility. This application seeks to establish a facility to undertake expression profiling in vertebrate tissues on a genomic scale and at the highest resolution. Undertaking large scale projects of this nature requires specialised robotics and dedicated infrastructure for microscopy and tissue preparation. This facility will be the first of its type in Australia will permit researchers to perform genomic scale in situ screens, many as part of large international initiatives in developmental and cellular biology. This large-scale, high-resolution expression profiling infrastructure is required to maintain international competitiveness and will dramatically improve our gene discovery, functional assessment and understanding of vertebrate development.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